17 September,2020 05:54 AM IST | Mumbai | Dharmendra Jore
The incident took place in the wee hours of Tuesday. Pic/Rajesh Gupta
Claiming that the cases of sexual assault on women have recently increased across Maharashtra, opposition leader Devendra Fadnavis on Wednesday demanded that the state government act immediately. He also reiterated his demand for a standard operating procedure (SOP) to ensure safety of women at COVID facilities as incidents of sexual abuse have been reported at some of them.
Also read: Mumbai: COVID-19 Centre Cleaner Nabbed For Molesting 17-Year-Old Patient
Fadnavis said he wrote to Chief Minister Uddhav Thackeray again on Wednesday, reminding him of the demand for an SOP. "Crimes against women have increased not only in the COVID centres, but elsewhere [in the state] too. The government is expected to take this issue seriously, but it has been highly insensitive," said the former CM.
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Devendra Fadnavis
He said that the people, who go on TV debates and talk about various issues, haven't said a word on crimes against women. "This is today's reality and insensitivity. When the government doesn't respond, we have to remind it again and again," he added.
In his letter Fadnavis mentioned about the cases of rape and molestations at COVID centres over the past few months. On Wednesday, mid-day reported about the latest incident of sexual assault in a COVID facility, in which a sanitation worker at a Mankhurd unit molested a 17-year-old patient on Tuesday morning. Deepak Salvi, 20, was subsequently arrested and the agency that had sent him to the centre was fired.
"Arresting the culprits alone won't prevent the crime. Action must also be taken against the government officials who are responsible for these facilities," he said. The BJP leader also pointed to nearly 20 recent cases of serious crimes against women that have happened in different situations and places across the state.
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