Fear has gripped tribal girl students and their parents in Buldhana district after the alleged rape of two fellow minor students of the Nimbaji Kokre Ashramshala (tribal boarding school) in Hiwarkheda.
Over 50 girl students, who live in Halkheda village in Jalgaon district, have refused to return to the boarding school after the alleged rapes, and have conveyed their feelings to the state tribal welfare department.
Some students have even reportedly threatened to kill themselves if their parents forced them to go back to the school.
Parents of the students said the girls have refused to rejoin the tribal boarding school out of fear over lack of safety and security. Officials of the state tribal welfare department are now visiting the houses of the affected students and asking them if they want to seek admission in other boarding schools nearby.
Ashramshalas of the region would reopen on November 15 after the Diwali vacation.
Nimbaji Kokre Ashramshala at Hiwarkheda was in the news recently after 15 persons, including teachers, were arrested for allegedly raping two minor tribal girl students. The accused include the president, secretary and joint secretary of the school.lured with food
{{/usCountry}}Nimbaji Kokre Ashramshala at Hiwarkheda was in the news recently after 15 persons, including teachers, were arrested for allegedly raping two minor tribal girl students. The accused include the president, secretary and joint secretary of the school.lured with food
{{/usCountry}}Chairperson of the Maharashtra State Commission for Women (MSCW), who visited the tribal boarding school in Buldhana said the institution did not have the proper infrastructure.
Asha Mirge, a former member of MSCW, said one of the girls told her about the way the accused operated.
“One of the girls, who taken in the police custody for questioning, told me that the main accused (sweeper) used to lure students with good food. He used to tell them that they will be given good food if he was allowed to do whatever he wanted,” she said.