District police on Saturday took suspended child protection officer(CPO) Ravi Roushan on remand for 48 hours in connection with the sexual exploitation of minor girls living at a government-funded short stay home in Muzaffarpur. The case broke open in the last week of May and pertains to the allegations of sexual assault and immoral trafficking of minors via a government-funded shelter home run by NGO “Seva Sankalp Evm Vikas Samiti” under the central government’s Integrated Child Protection Scheme (ICPS) “Samekit Baal Sanrakshan Yojana”
Local media reports that the special investigation team (SIT) is ‘all set’ to make more arrests in connection with the case. The girls have identified some more suspects in the case with the help of photographs. The police have arrested 10 persons, so far including those running the shelter home.
On Friday, station house officer of Mahila Police Station Jyoti had requested Protection of Children from Sexual Offences Act (POCSO) court to allow Ravi Roushan’s three-day remand. The court allowed a two-day remand.
Roushan is being investigated for his alleged involvement in the physical assault and sexual exploitation of minor girls staying at the shelter home run by the state government-funded Seva Sankalp Vikas Sansthan.
The Sadar Thana police have arrested the suspended CPO who was evading arrest since June 24. The girls who underwent sexual harassment at the hands of their caretakers including the suspended CPO Roushan have already made statements to POCSO court under Section 164 of IPC for outraging their modesty.
Senior SP Harprit Kaur said so far 10 persons were involved in sexual exploitation have been arrested and forwarded to judicial custody. They are in the Khudiram Bose Memorial Central Jail in Muzaffarpur.
The girls who stayed at the shelter home in Muzaffarpur have been shifted to shelter homes in Patna and adjoining districts.
City deputy SP Mukul Kumar Ranjan said he has reviewed the sexual exploitation case of minor girls of the shelter home at length with the investigation officer and the police would soon file chargesheets in the court. Police said the chairman of child welfare committee Dilip Kumar Verma and CWC member Vikas Kumar were still at large.
Another arrest in Shelter Home POCSO case added by NEWSNET DESK on
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Why does the same thing happen again and again, in place after place, kids who are vulnerable become victims of trafficking, abuse, and what not. Something is really rotten deep within our society.