School cab driver in Delhi ‘molests’ girl with special needs, arrested

The incident took place last week and the cab driver was arrested on Monday after the child’s mother lodged a police complaint.

A six-year-old girl, attending a school for children with special needs, was allegedly molested by her school cab driver in southwest Delhi.

The incident took place last week and the cab driver was arrested on Monday after the child’s mother lodged a police complaint.

According to the police, the child lives in a southwest Delhi neighbourhood and attends the school run by a group of doctors.

On Monday, the child’s mother approached the police and said her daughter told her that the cab driver had touched her inappropriately.

Deputy commissioner of police (southwest) Devender Arya said a case was registered under the Pocso Act and the driver, a 26-year-old man from Trilokpuri, was arrested.

The police are trying to establish the sequence of incidents as the driver said he had not driven the cab on August 23, the day of the crime.

A police officer, who was not authorised to speak to the media, said the school has “very few” children on rolls and only three cabs to pick and drop them every day.

“One woman attendant is always present in the cabs. It has been found that the molestation did not happen in the cab. CCTV footage at the school was checked but nothing suspicious was spotted. But since the child has named the accused during counselling and to her mother, we have taken action,” school authorities reportedly told investigators.

Police officials, meanwhile, said it cannot be denied that the alleged assault could have happened somewhere else.

DCP Arya said no criminal record was found against the suspect. “Teachers from the school are being questioned and investigation is underway,” he said.

Two more cases of alleged sexual assault by school employees had been reported this month.

A Sanskrit teacher with a government school in north Delhi was arrested last Friday for allegedly abusing a class 10 student during summer vacations in June this year at his house.

Earlier this month, on August 9, an electrician at a government girl’s school was arrested for allegedly raping a 6-year-old girl in the pump house of the school.

The school and its officials could not be contacted as of late Tuesday night.