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A shelter home in Bihar’s Muzaffarpur came under the scanner when an audit report by the Tata Institute of Social Sciences (TISS), in June, revealed that minor girls living there were being subjected to sexual assault. Now, more shocking revelations have been made.
Bihar DGP KS Dwivedi stated that 42 out of 44 girls have undergone medical examinations. The medical reports indicated sexual contact in 29 out of the 42 cases. These girls are aged between six and 18, according to NDTV.
Amid reports that a girl was allegedly beaten to death and then buried in the compound, the local police have dug up the ground at the shelter home. However, no body has been recovered from the spot, reported ANI. The police have sent a sample of the soil from the spot to a Forensic Science Laboratory.
Muzaffarpur SSP Harpreet Kaur told PTI that the area was dug up in the presence of a former inmate of the shelter home who had first alleged that one of the girls had been killed and buried in the premises, and two others who had corroborated her statement.
They are in the age group of 10 to 12 years. Their statements so far have not been very coherent. However, we have carried out the investigations based on whatever inputs we had.Muzaffarpur SSP Harpreet Kaur
SSP Kaur also informed PTI that the police had come across complaints during their probe saying that six girls had gone missing from the shelter home between 2013 and May 2018.
Dwivedi on Tuesday, 24 July, added, “Four girls were reported missing from the shelter home since 15 December 2013. Three girls were reported dead, while two in hospital. When we checked their record, only one girl was missing. She was found married in Muzaffarpur during the investigation.”
During their investigation, the police found out from one of the inmates that the girls were often beaten up, and one girl was killed over a disagreement with the staff.
More than 10 people, including staff members of the shelter home and some government officials, have been arrested.
The shelter home was shut down following the TISS report, and the inmates have reportedly been shifted to other districts.
Owner of NGO Close to Nitish Kumar: Tejashwi Yadav
Tejashwi Prasad Yadav, Leader of Opposition in Bihar Assembly, on 22 July attacked the Bihar government for its "failure" to protect the girls at the shelter home in Muzaffarpur and in other places.
The owner of the NGO that runs the shelter home is close to Chief Minister Nitish Kumar, and had even campaigned for him in elections.Tejashwi Yadav told ANI
The RJD leader alleged that the state government was protecting the accused.
"Since March, the Bihar government is aware about repeated rapes committed against 40 minor inmates of Muzaffarpur shelter home by politicians and officials for years. Many had forced abortions. No action has been taken but cover up is on at war footing," the RJD leader said in a press release.
He further alleged that that "40 minor girls of seven to 17 year were repeatedly raped under one roof for months in a state sponsored shelter home. The patron of the NGO is close to who’s who of the government. After the disclosure, few girls went missing, a girl was found murdered, buried."
What Did the TISS Report Say?
The audit conducted, from January to March, by Mumbai-based TISS raised questions on the ways they government home was being run.
The girl’s children’s home in Muzaffarpur run by Seva Sankalp Evam Vikas Samiti was both found by us to be running in a highly questionable manner along with grave instances of violence that were reported by the residents. Several girls reported about violence and being abused sexually. This is very serious and needs to be further investigated promptly. Immediate legal procedure must be followed to enquire into the charges and corrective measures be taken.Excerpt from the TISS audit
According to a report in The Times of India, it was district Child Protection Unit assistant director Dibesh Kumar Sharma who began the crackdown after receiving the audit on 26 May. On 28 May, he wrote a letter to the Social Welfare Department demanding action be taken. He got the go-ahead the next day, after which a written complaint was filed at the police station and all the minor girls were shifted under police protection to Madhubani and Patna.
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