Supreme Court asks Bihar to file action-taken report in Muzaffarpur sexual assault case
The Hindu
Several girls were allegedly raped and sexually abused at an NGO-run shelter home
The Supreme Court on Wednesday directed Bihar to file a report on action taken against State officers involved in the Muzaffarpur shelter home sexual assault case.
A Bench led by Chief Justice of India N.V. Ramana noted that investigation was complete in the matter and 19 persons were convicted.
"The petitioner has sought a direction regarding probe into the shelter homes. The CBI has also filed an application regarding repatriation of officers to the parent cadre. Investigation was done by CBI regarding one shelter home and then against others too. There have been 19 convictions in the main case… The State submits action has been taken against erring officers. The State is directed to file an action-taken report,” the Bench ordered.
The court listed the case after two weeks.
The order came after advocate Shoeb Alam, appearing for the petitioner, submitted that recently there was a newspaper report about the Patna High Court taking cognisance in a matter where a juvenile girl ran from a shelter home where she was sexually exploited in the same modus operandi as happened in the earlier cases.
The apex court had earlier granted three months to the CBI to complete the probe in the case, including suspected murders, and had directed it to widen the scope to investigate the "outsiders" involved in the crime.
Several girls were allegedly raped and sexually abused at an NGO-run shelter home in Muzaffarpur and the issue had come to light following a report by the Tata Institute of Social Sciences (TISS).
The election authorities are gearing up for the counting of votes cast in the simultaneous elections to Lok Sabha and Assembly seats in Andhra Pradesh, scheduled to be held on June 4. The Collectors and Election Officers of Visakhapatnam, Anakapalli and Alluri Sitharama Raju (ASR) districts said on May 23 (Thursday) that their teams were ready for the counting of votes.
Responding to the prolonged water scarcity, the residents of the area took to the streets in protest on Wednesday. The protest, which drew attention to their plight, stopped only after the intervention of the police. It was not until 1.30 p.m. that a 4000-litre tanker was finally delivered by BWSSB, providing relief to the water-starved residents.