The Fast Track Special Court for rape and POCSO at Nampally on Tuesday sentenced the driver of BS DAV Public School, Banjara Hills, to 20 years imprisonment for sexually assaulting a four-year-old girl in the institution’s premises.
The court, while convicting Bimana Rajni Kumar, who was booked under relevant sections of the Protection of Children from Sexual Offenses Act for rape and sexual offenses in October last year, also imposed a fine.
Another accused in the case, the institute’s principal S Madhavi, who was booked for failure to report the matter to the police, was acquitted.
The alleged sexual assault of the kindergarten student went on for two months inside the school’s digital classroom. Kumar, Ms. Madhavi’s driver, who is also involved in other tasks and helps teachers with odd jobs, took the girl to the digital classroom and sexually assaulted her.
The incident came to light on October 18, 2022, when the girl’s parents approached the Banjara Hills police. He alleged that “the whole incident took place due to the negligence of the school principal Shivaraju Madhavi”.
The police arrested Kumar and Ms. Madhavi, who had been on the run for some time, and began an investigation.
The incident created a sensation in the city and agitated parents, civil society and the government. Several demonstrations and protests were recorded, demands were raised to de-affiliate the school, and child safety, education on sexual offenses and preventive measures were debated.
After the protests, the government also decided to cancel the license of BS DAV and transfer the students to other institutions. However, a government order a week later, registering complaints in transition of the students, allowed the school to operate for the remainder of the academic year.
The Banjara Hills police said the investigation was completed in 34 days and cited 19 witnesses for the court. Both the SHE and Bharosa team counseled the girl and offered support to the family through the trial.
A police release described the sentence as “imposed to give confidence to the community”.
Hyderabad City Police Commissioner CV Anand later in the day lauded the efforts of the investigation, SHE team, trust and legal teams.