In a case involving the sexual assault of two minor girls, the Special Investigation Team (SIT) produced the school’s chairman, Uday Kotwal, and secretary, Tushar Apte, before the Kalyan POCSO (Protection of Children from Sexual Offences) court on Friday. After reviewing the evidence and hearing arguments from the defence lawyer, the investigating agency, and the public prosecutor, the court granted bail to the accused.
During the hearing, the investigation agency requested police custody for further investigation. However, the court questioned the need for custody, pointing out that the accused had already been held for 24 hours and chargesheets had been filed. The defence lawyer argued that the offences were bailable, leading the court to deny police custody and release the accused on bail.
Earlier, on Wednesday, the Thane Crime Branch had detained Kotwal and Apte in connection with the sexual assault of two four-year-old girls at their school in Badlapur. The assaults were carried out by the janitor, Akshay Shinde, who was later shot dead by police in Mumbra after allegedly snatching a policeman’s gun and firing at officers.
Following their detention, Kotwal and Apte underwent a medical examination under heavy security and were presented in court the next day, where they were released on bail in one case. The SIT has filed two chargesheets related to the assault of the two girls, and a case was also lodged against the school officials for their failure to report the incident as required under Section 21 of the POCSO Act.
