Mangaluru, May 22: Dozens of activists staged a protest under the banner of United Muslim Organisation, Dakshina Kannada District, in front of the Deputy Commissioner's office here on Friday, demanding the closure of the Mangalore One School in connection with the sexual abuse on a three-year-old girl studying in the school by a van driver.
Addressing the protestors, president of the organisation K Ashraf said that although the police department and deputy commissioner had responded positively in the sexual assault case, the management committee of Mangalore One School where the girl was a student, had circulated copies of a statement through post alleging that the child was tutored to tell a false statement and the mother of the child was forced to lodge a false complaint against the school.
"We need to decide whether we need such kind of a school in our district. Even to this day, no political member or party has come forward to take up the case and strongly urge justice for the child as well as action against the school management. We need to join hands and fight unitedly until the school authorities are taken to task and the school shuts down," he urged.
Speaking on the occasion, president of UNIWEF Karnataka Rafeeuddin Kudroli said that the single agenda of the movement undertaken by the organisation was to shut down the school, since the school management had not made any public statement in favour of the child who was sexually abused. The school authorities still have ample opportunity to extend their support to the child, but they have not extended any support to the child or her family till date. The school authorities should come forward to justify their stance publicly and explain what happened in the school on that fateful day, he said, stressing that the public would not allow crimes of sexual nature to occur against their children, especially Muslim girls, in the future.
Condemning the school authorities and those of Lady Goschen Hospital, he demanded to know how the medical report of the child could be leaked to the school when the parents of the child could not access it.
Blaming the local MLAs and politicians for their lack of support in the case, he alleged that after winning the Assembly elections, the local MLAs had become arrogant and negligent towards the problems of minorities. Until three days after the child was sexually abused and admitted to the hospital, no politician paid a visit to enquire about the condition of the child, he said, adding that the incident had to be brought to the notice of the Chief Minister.
Jaffer Sadiq Faizi said that the school management was still continuing its efforts to pressurise and threaten the family to withdraw the case.
Founder of Shanthi Prakashana, Mangaluru Mohammed Kunhi, SDPI district secretary Riyaz Farangipete, PFI state secretary Shafi Bellare, PFI district president Mohammed Haneef, Azeez Kudroli and others participated in the protest.
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