Principal and teacher suspended over sex assault on nursery kids in Thane

THANE: After two nursery students, four-year-old girls, were sexually abused by the sweeper of a reputed school in Thane district, triggering widespread protests, the school administration on Monday suspended the principal, class teacher, and female attendant, holding them responsible for the incident.
The school has also sacked the arrested accused who worked on a contractual basis.
Police station in-charge Subhada Shitole, who delayed registering FIR when the parents of the child approached the police station, has been transferred to special branch by Thane police.
Angered by the incident, locals have called for a bandh in Badlapur city while a women's organisation has decided to hold a protest outside the school on Tuesday. DCP Sudhakar Pathare, however, held a meeting with citizens informing them that they plan to take the case to a fast track court. Pathare also appealed to public against staging agitation without police permission and warned of legal action.
The school administration has also announced some urgent steps and formed an inquiry committee to prevent similar incidents in the future.
Cameras are also being installed in places where CCTV cameras were not present earlier.
A woman who is part of the group that will lead the protest on Tuesday said, "The school administration took four days to take action after citizens declared a bandh We will hold a peaceful bandh and protest."
Locals said that along with citizens, rickshaw union, traders' union, jewellers association, and now some political parties have also come forward to join the bandh. Police said the accused, hired by the school on August 1, will be in police remand till August 21. A senior official said the police team also questioned other children in the school, but so far, no new complaints of sexual assault have come up.