CRPF men held for ‘molesting’ schoolgirls
THE INCIDENT TOOK PLACE IN A GIRLS’ HOSTEL ON JULY 31 IN DANTEWADA DURING A PROGRAMME WHERE THE STUDENTS WERE SUPPOSED TO TIE RAKHIS TO PERSONNEL
RAIPUR: Chhattisgarh police on Wednesday identified two Central Reserve Police Force (CRPF) personnel accused of molesting schoolgirls during a cultural programme last month and arrested one of them.
Police said they arrested 31-year-old Shamim Ahmed and sent a team to Uttarakhand to arrest 34-year-old Neeraj Kandwal, who hails from the hill state and is on leave.
The alleged molestation took place in a girls’ hostel on July 31 in the Maoist stronghold of Dantewada during a programme where the students were supposed to tie rakhis to personnel.
After the programme — sponsored by a private news channel — finished, security personnel allegedly followed the girls to the toilet and molested them.
“The two accused have been identified on the basis of photo identification of around 254 CRPF personnel by 16 victims on Tuesday,” said Abhishek Pallav, additional superintendent of police (Dantewada). Both have been suspended. HT had reported on Monday that the Chhattisgarh police launched an investigation against unknown CRPF personnel, a development that triggered widespread outrage in a region where security forces are often accused of egregious human rights violations.
The probe was launched after the warden complained to the police. Palnar, where the alleged incident took place, is 25km away from the district headquarters of Dantewada.
The incident came to light after activist Himanshu Kumar wrote about it on Facebook on Sunday.
Nearly 500 girls took part in the July 31 event to be telecast on the local news channels, and tied rakhis to the personnel.Based on the complaint,an FIRwas lodged under IPC section 354 (molestation) and relevant provisions of the Protection of Children from Sexual Offences (POCSO) Act at the Kuakonda police station.
Security forces taking on Maoists in Chhattisgarh often face accusations of rights violations, including sexual violence.
Allegations of brutal rights violations in Bijapur district two years ago earned security forces the wrath of the National Human Rights Commission (NHRC).
In January, the NHRC stated in a report there was prima facie evidence that security forces raped and sexually assaulted 16 tribal women during an operation in October 2015 in Bijapur district. The five-day operation was reportedly carried out by state police and the CRPF.
Recently, Chhattisgarh police recruited 32 women to protect their reputation and take the fight to Maoists lording over pockets of Bastar. The 32 are constables who underwent rigorous training as commandos in Bijapur district, about 422km south of state capital Raipur, in Bastar. They will be the first batch of woman commandos of Ch hat tisgarh police to be deployed for operations in Bastar