The superintendent of the government-run home for boys was on Saturday suspended for his negligence, which led to the assault of the 13-year-old boy by the home’s caretaker. This amounted to custodial torture, Child Welfare Committee (CWC) members stated.
The Wilson Garden police arrested the caretaker, Ramesh, on Friday.
The Women and Child Development Department has suspended the superintendent, Rajendra Prasad, and initiated departmental enquiry against him.
According to the police, the CWC has received many complaints about the harassment of children by the staff. The CWC had issued warnings in the past and served notices to the superintendent. The Wilson Garden police are continuing investigations to ascertain the reasons for the assault. While the victim stated that he was assaulted as he refused to clean the washrooms, the caretaker said he was beaten as he was trying to escape. “We are going to visit the home to question the staff and speak to the boys to ascertain if they too have been assaulted by the staff,” a police official said.
