The Delhi High Court is reviewing the bail granted to a teacher in the Janakpuri school assault case, where a three-year-old girl was allegedly raped, raising questions about accountability and child safety.
Key Points
- Delhi Police seek cancellation of bail for a teacher in a Janakpuri school assault case.
- The Delhi High Court issued a notice to the teacher regarding the police's plea challenging her bail under the POCSO Act.
- The main accused, Lalit Kumar, has been given time to respond to the police's plea against his bail.
- The case involves the alleged rape of a three-year-old girl by a staff member at a private school in Janakpuri.
- The accused teacher is alleged to have concealed the incident from the school authorities.
The Delhi Police on Monday urged the Delhi High Court to cancel the bail granted to a female teacher in a case concerning the alleged rape of a three-year-old girl by a staffer inside a private school in west Delhi's Janakpuri area.
Delhi HC Issues Notice in School Assault Case
Justice Saurabh Banerjee issued notice to the teacher on the police's plea challenging the trial court order which granted bail to her on May 20 in the case under the Protection of Children from Sexual Offences (POCSO) Act.
Accused Given Time to Respond
The judge also granted time to the main accused, Lalit Kumar, to respond to the police's plea against the trial court order granting him bail and listed both the cases for hearing on June 17 before a vacation bench.
Details of the Arrest and Allegations
The teacher was arrested for allegedly concealing the incident from the authorities and was remanded to one day's police custody by the trial court on May 14.
The incident came to light on May 1 when the victim's mother filed a complaint at Janakpuri police station, alleging that her daughter was sexually assaulted during school hours by the main accused, Kumar.
According to the complaint, the child had gone to the school on April 30, the second day after her admission.
After returning home, she complained of pain. When questioned by her mother, the girl said that she was taken to an isolated area in the school, where the man allegedly assaulted her.
Legal Proceedings and Charges
Based on the complaint by the child's mother, police registered a case under Section 64(1) (punishment for rape) of the Bharatiya Nyaya Sanhita (BNS) and Section 6 (Punishment for aggravated penetrative sexual assault) of the POCSO Act.
Section 6 mandates a minimum of 20 years of rigorous imprisonment, which can be extended to life imprisonment, or death penalty for the offence.
Police said the child identified the accused, following which the 57-year-old school caretaker was arrested on May 1. He was later produced before a court and sent to judicial custody.
However, he was granted bail by a court in Dwarka on May 7 despite strong opposition from the prosecution.
Earlier, the police filed a plea against the trial court order granting bail to the main accused, the caretaker. They argued that it was a "gross case" and the trial court granted him relief within a few days of his arrest, despite the survivor identifying him as the perpetrator.
