Police say as boys are minors, they cannot be booked or questioned without permission of CWC; emboldened youngsters continue to harass the girls
When a parent approached cops they turned them away since the boys are minors. Representation pic
- Young girls from Sakinaka have been scared of going to school
- A group of minor boys from the adjoining slums who have allegedly been harassing them
- The families of the girls allege that the boys have been passing lewd comments
Young girls from Sakinaka have been scared of going to school over the last few months owing to a group of minor boys from the adjoining slums who have allegedly been harassing them as they pass through the area. The families of the girls allege that the boys have been passing lewd comments and have even thrown eggs at them.
When one of the parents approached the Sakinaka police the cops turned them away since the boys are minors and they would need the permission of the Child Welfare Committee (CWC). “We were in shock when our daughter told us about the incident. She said that some group of boys had been passing vulgar comments since December. But, they crossed the line when they threw eggs.
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Usually, my wife goes to pick up my daughter but she was late that day. The boys threw eggs and my daughter’s face swelled up because of the impact. On January 19, we first approached the police to register an FIR. But, we were told that the boys are minors and hence they can’t register an FIR directly and have to approach the CWC,” said the father of a 14-year-old girl.
He added, “We were called to have a word with the parents of the boy who threw an egg at my daughter. The family of the boy claimed that he had gone for tuition at the time. We are not even updated about the status of the case by the police. The girls now fear going to school and we are concerned about their safety.”
The parents allege that following the complaint from the girl’s parents, the cops called one of the boys from the group to the police station and let him off without any warning with just a couple of questions. This seems to have given the boys courage and they are now spotted regularly outside the school when the girls leave the premises.
The father of another girl said, “Even after complaining to the cops, one of the boys still roams around the school premises for no reason, waits outside the school when the girls leave to create fear,” adding that, “One of the passers-by had noticed that the boy had thrown the egg on the victim. He tried to intervene but the boys beat him. The boys are very rude and roam freely without any hesitation around the area.” Confirming the reports, Senior PI Gabaji Chimte of Sakinaka police station said, “Since all minors are involved in this crime we have submitted a report to the Child Welfare Committee and we await their report to take appropriate action.”
Left with no choice, the family members of the victims approached a lawyer, Pankaj Mishra. Mishra and the victims’ family approached Zone 10’s DCP Datta Nalawade and wrote a letter to the high court as they were not updated about the case. “We had written a letter to the DCP, he instructed the Sakinaka police to take appropriate action and update us about the status of the same. In response to our letter, the high court had also stated that the police should update us about the case status but we have not received any update,” Pankaj Mishra said. “Despite the DCP and court’s instructions, we have been told that a letter had been sent to CWC as police can’t register an FIR against minors without a CWC order,” added Mishra.
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