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Bodies of minor, school bus driver found, school mgmt booked in Karnataka district: Police
The girl’s father had complained to the school management in October, stating that the driver had been harassing his daughter for some time
The bodies of a 14-year-old girl and a 38-year-old private school bus driver, who had allegedly been pursuing the minor, were found near a railway track, in a suspected case of suicide, in Ajjampura area of Chikmagalur district in Karnataka, said police on Tuesday, adding that a case has been registered against the private school for failing to take action against the driver despite the girl’s family flagging the issue with them.
According to a police official familiar with the matter, the girl who was studying in Class 8 at a private school in Giriyapura near Ajjampura had earlier told her parents about the bus driver “making romantic advances towards her”. Following this, the victim’s father filed a complaint with the school stating that his daughter is being harassed by the driver, said police.
“As per the father’s complaint, the driver who was married has been subjecting the student to harassment...initial investigation suggests that he sought romantic involvement with her,” said the official quoted above. Despite the minor’s father filing a complaint with the school principal, the “management failed to take any substantive action against the accused driver”, said the official.
The girl’s father had complained to the school management in October, stating that the driver had been harassing his daughter for some time. However, the school management did not inquire nor take action against the driver. The management did not even inform the police or the child protection unit, said the official quoted earlier.
On the night of December 31, the minor informed her parents that she “is going to collect notes from a friend’s house”, said police, adding, she, however, did not return back at night. In the morning, the girl’s father filed a missing complaint with the police. During investigation, the police found the minor and the driver’s bodies near the railway track.
Arsikere railway police inspector Manju said that a case has been registered against the school management for failing to take action against the driver despite complaint by the girl’s parents. “We have registered a case against the school management and the bus driver under Section 305 (abetment to suicide) of the Indian Penal Code and the relevant sections of the Protection of Children from Sexual Offences (Pocso) Act, and the investigation into the matter is ongoing,” said the inspector.
He mentioned that the case was filed based on a complaint by the girl’s father. The autopsy of the bodies was conducted at Mallegowda district hospital, and later the bodies were handed over to their family members, said police. Repeated phone calls to the school principal for a comment on the issue remained unanswered.
