Following the directions of the National Commission for Protection of Child Rights (NCPCR), the Mohali administration has added more sections to the FIR against the school director and management of Career Point Gurukul, Mohali, where 42 students and three staff members were found Covid-19 positive on April 26 this year.
The fully residential school, with around 200 students, had not shut despite the state government’s guidelines amid the soaring cases of the second wave of infections.
Initially, the FIR was registered under Section 188 (disobedience to order duly promulgated by public servant) and Section 51 of the Disaster Management Act.
Now, the administration has added Sections 269 (negligent act likely to spread the infection), 270 (malignantly does any act which he knows or has reason to believe will spread the infection), 34 (acts done by several persons in furtherance of common intention), 188 (2) (disobedience to order promulgated by public servant), 342 (punishment for wrongful confinement), and 340 (wrongful restraint) of the Indian Penal Code (IPC), and Section 75 of the Juvenile Justice (Care & Protection of Children) Act, 2015.
Taking suo moto cognisance of news reports of Hindustan Times on the Covid-19 outbreak at the residential school, the NCPCR had sought a detailed report from the office of Mohali deputy commissioner.
{{/usCountry}}Taking suo moto cognisance of news reports of Hindustan Times on the Covid-19 outbreak at the residential school, the NCPCR had sought a detailed report from the office of Mohali deputy commissioner.
{{/usCountry}}But despite three reminders, the administration failed to reply and later the commission had summoned the Mohali deputy commissioner (DC) to appear in-person before the commission on August 10.
DC Girish Dayalan, who had appeared before the commission through video conferencing, said, “The commission also recommended Section 304-A (causing death by negligence), but no death has taken place in the school, so it is not admissible.”
When contacted, the school director Umed Singh said, “More sections have been added as one of the NGOs has a personal grudge against us. They were blackmailing us, but we did not oblige to them, so they are doing all this. Our legal team from Kota will give a reply.”
The commission chairperson, in a letter to the administration, stated, “Following the examination of the Action Taken Report (ATR) and representations received from several parents, the commission is of the view that that your good office may reexamine or investigate this matter and recommend registration of FIR under 304- A, 269, 270, 34, 188 (2), 342, and 340 of Indian Penal Code (IPC) and Section 75 of the Juvenile Justice (Care & Protection of Children) Act, 2015.
In April 2021, acting on a complaint about students of a residential school suffering from moderate to high-grade fever, that the Mohali administration had dispatched a medical team to conduct COVID 19 tests at the schools, where 42 students and three members of staff were tested positive.