Bagalkot: Bagalkot police have arrested four accused and conducted a spot mahazar on Sunday in connection with the alleged inhuman assault on a mentally challenged student at a residential special school for mentally challenged children in the city.A team led by DySP Gajanan Sutar brought the accused to the school premises in Sector 54 where the incident occurred and conducted a spot inspection (mahazar). After medical examinations, the accused were produced before the court which remanded them to judicial custody.The head and staff of Divyajyoti Residential Special School run by the Siddhagiri Education and Social Service Institution For Children with Disabilities allegedly subjected a mentally challenged teenager to brutal physical abuse, including beating him with a belt and throwing chilli powder into his eyes.The alleged inhuman acts came to light after a woman employee of the school secretly recorded the abuse and the videos went viral. Acting swiftly, the police rescued the children and took into custody the school head Akshay Indulkar and his wife Malini (also known as Anandi). Parents have alleged that such inhuman treatment of children was routine at the school.Ashok Rathod, the father of the injured boy, Deepak has filed a complaint at the Navanagar police station against Akshay Indulkar, head of the Divyajyoti Residential Special School for Mentally Challenged Children in Sector 54 of Navanagar; Ravikant Ashok Budihal; Akshay’s wife Anandi Indulkar; and Vishal Baburao Patil.The school has reportedly been functioning for the past four years. Hailing from Mantur village in Mudhol taluk, 16-year-old Deepak Rathod of had been studying there for the last three and a half years. The viral video shows Akshay Indulkar assaulting the Deepak with a belt, while his wife is seen throwing chilli powder into the boy’s eyes. During the assault, another staff member is seen standing on the boy’s leg, while others allegedly laugh in a perverse manner. The disturbing visuals have triggered widespread public outrage.Judicial inspectionAs the incident gained serious attention following wide media coverage, Principal Civil Judge of the JMFC court, Murughendra Tubaki, visited the school and conducted an inspection. He sought details of the incident from the police and officials of the women and child welfare department and the Department for the empowerment of persons with disabilities, and inspected the school premises.Children returned to parentsThe Divyajyoti Residential Special School for Mentally Challenged Children is run under the Siddagiri Educational and Social Service Institution. Although the institution is registered, it had not obtained permission to run the school. While records indicated that 48 children were enrolled, only 32 children were found at the school. Most parents arrived at the school and took their children back with them.Medical examination of childrenSoon after the incident was reported, a team of officials led by Prabhakar, deputy director of the women and child welfare department, camped at the school. Doctors were called in to conduct medical examinations of the children, and parents were contacted and persuaded to take their children home. Four children without parents present were shifted to other schools.BoxCriminal case against assault on mentally challenged boy: Min Laxmi HebbalkarWomen and child welfare minister Laxmi Hebbalkar said at Belagavi that a criminal case would be registered against those responsible for assaulting Deepak Rathod, a mentally challenged boy, at the Divyajyoti School for Blind Children in Bagalkot.Hebbalkar described the incident as ‘inhuman’ and said it amounted to a gross violation of child protection laws. “Physical punishment of able-bodied children is a punishable offence today. In such a situation, assaulting a mentally challenged child is absolutely unacceptable,” she said.The minister revealed that the residential institution was being run illegally without govt permission. “The incident has brought shame to society and is deeply embarrassing for us as well. Immediately after the matter came to light, officials were deputed to the spot. I have also spoken to the Bagalkot deputy commissioner, and steps will be taken to shut down the school,” she said.Box | School unauthorisedDivyajyoti School was being run under the Siddhagiri Education and Social Service Institution, which is registered as an organisation working for the welfare of persons with disabilities. However, the Divyajyoti residential special school itself was not registered. Deputy Director of the Women and Child Welfare Department Prabhakar said the department was not aware of the school’s operation. Children will be sent back with their parents, while four children without guardians will be shifted to another authorised school for mentally challenged children. The women and child development department has decided to identify whether similar schools are operating elsewhere in the district. After completing the process of handing over the children of Divyajyoti School to their parents, a stringent inspection drive will be undertaken, deputy director Prabhakar said.Box | Woman Who Shot Video Also DetainedThe video was reportedly recorded by Ameeda, a woman who was working at the school and had recently quit. Police suspect that she made the video viral and have taken her into custody for questioning.Box | Forced labour along with assaultApart from the physical abuse, parents alleged that they were paying a monthly fee of Rs 6,000, yet the child was forced to clean filth left by other children and made to wash clothes. A separate video reportedly shows the boy washing clothes while sitting inside a toilet.QuoteThey subjected my son to unbearable torture. Since he is mentally challenged, he could not explain what was happening at school. Only after the video surfaced did we realise the extent of their cruelty— Parvati Rathod, mother of the assaulted childQuoteWatching the videos of the assault on children with intellectual disabilities is extremely painful. These people are not human. They need to be punished severely— PH Pujar, MLC
