A four-year-old girl was raped by a school van driver, Mohammad Arif, in Lucknow’s Indira Nagar area earlier this week. The incident occurred inside the school van on Monday while the girl was on her way to school.
The girl reported the incident to her mother, who subsequently informed the school authorities.
“My child complained of pain in her private parts. On examination, I found that she had suffered an injury. I complained to the principal, who said she would talk about it. When I took the child to the doctor, the doctor said that whatever the child had said was done to her and something was inserted in her private parts,” the mother of the 4-year-old said.
However, the management failed to take any action. Arif also allegedly threatened the mother, warning that her daughter would “disappear” if a complaint was filed.
“I waited for two days but no action was taken by the school and the driver called again to pick the child for school. When we confronted him, he harassed us in front of the school and made casteist remarks. We were threatened with abduction, even the school also asked us not to complain,” the girl’s mother added.
On Thursday, the mother lodged an official complaint against Arif and the school manager, Sandeep Kumar, at the Indira Nagar police station.
After lodging the complaint, police arrested Arif and remanded him to judicial custody. The van involved in the incident has been seized.
Police confirmed the girl was alone in the van at the time of rape. The mother stated that the girl described the incident through gestures.
Additionally, a medical examination confirmed the girl’s injuries. Police reported that Arif beat and intimidated the girl when she resisted.
DCP East Zone Shashank Singh said, “A complaint was registered in Indira Nagar police station on July 17th that the 4-year-old daughter of the complainant was subjected to misdeed by her school van driver Mohammad Arif… A case has been registered under the relevant sections and two teams have been deployed to review the incident. The driver has been arrested.”
Uttar Pradesh Minister Sanjay Nishad condemned the incident and demanded strict punishment to prevent such crimes. “We strongly condemn the incident. Strict action will be taken against the accused to ensure justice. The case must be fast-tracked to deter such crimes,” the minister said.
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