Child sexual abuse is disturbingly common in homes, schools, and residential care facilities in India. PHOTO: FILE
The children were made to eat faeces as a punishment if they did not comply.
The 52-year-old owner of the Chandraprabha Charitable Trust and his 30-year-old female manager were arrested on Monday after a police raid on the school in Karjat city in Maharashtra state.
"We received a police complaint from the Childline charity saying that one child had gone home for the holidays and confessed to his mother that abuses were happening," Karjat's Police Inspector RR Patil told the Thomson Reuters Foundation late on Thursday.
"Five children in total have now come forward and we have booked the two suspects under various offences," he said, adding that these included unnatural sex (sodomy), wrongful confinement and sexual assault.
The school accommodated 28 underprivileged children, aged between 4 and 14, for 10 months of the year, said Patil, but most were on holiday at home at the time of the raid.
Police were trying to find out whether other children were abused and if there were any other suspects.
Anuradha Sahasrabudhe of Childline, a charity supported by the government, said the children had spoken about all kinds of sexual and physical abuse.
"It's a horrific case. The children have been telling us about the sexual abuse going on there. There has been oral sex, there has been forced sex... These things have been photographed," Saharasabudhe told the NDTV news channel.
"Children have been punished by making them eat dog excreta and when they vomited, they were made to eat vomit," she added.
Police say the residential school had been running since 2002, but was not registered and had therefore escaped government inspections by child welfare officials.
Child sexual abuse is disturbingly common in homes, schools, and residential care facilities in India.
Inspection mechanisms for children's homes, shelters and schools are inadequate and many privately run facilities are not even registered, a February 2013 report by Human Rights Watch said.
In May 2012, serious sexual abuse was uncovered at a well-established residential care home for orphans called Apna Ghar (Our Home) in Rohtak on the outskirts of Delhi.
Girls said they were forced to have sex with strangers for money and that they had been abused.
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@Newbie:
"I wonder why such people/monsters never get killed by a mob, which happens quite easily when religion comes in (Well I don’t just mean India). Either be it these 2 or the ‘juvenile’ in Nirbhaya case & too many more sick * deserve mob ‘justice’."
There is a reason, I believe.
In case of religious violence, usually culprits get away. They are not easily caught or properly tried and finally not adequately punished. Hence people form mobs to get justice.
Take Gujrat riots for example: Out of the 2000 strong mob that participated in the burning of the train at Godhra only 31 were convicted. This was going to happen. It's a historical fact in any country that mobs get away from trial. Hence Hindus formed a mob and retaliated which according to them was injustice.
In this case, the culprits are bound to get exemplary punishment. No need for mob punishment.
all govts . of south east asia are requested to make surprise inspections of all schools mandatory in future, please.
@salman did you bother reading ET today you missed the rape cases in your country I guess. Or you are just ignorant. Today malaysia had its shock, 38men gangraped a minor in a hut in their country. God save asia. We have all forgotten our ancient tradition and respect we had for woman..
Oh my God, India is shining!
Reminds one that there is true evil in this World - these people deserve a fair trial and if found guilty locked away forever.
@salman and stoning women to death only in Pakistan. That is surely true with hardly anyone being punished. On the other hand culprits in this case will be in jail and will get strictest possible punishment under Indian law.
Horrifying case. As an Indian, this is a tragic pill to swallow. I hope that the worst is probably over for these children. I also hope that two accused are prosecuted and sentenced to the fullest extent of the law. Poverty is the biggest evil here - it guided these poor, innocent children to those two waiting devils in the first place.
@lol:
no. just in India.
@lol: Oh yes, now when it comes to India the whole south asia is involved, an when it comes to terrorism then only Pakistan is responsible for it, typical cheap indian logic!
Don't bring South Asia in it. This is shinning India.
what??? HORRIFIC!
disturbing.... trend very common in south asia........
And then many of these Indians on this website have the audacity to bash Pakistan from a position of Moral high ground. Not trying to justify the violations in Pakistan but if these trolls focused on raising voice in their shining India rather than telling us how bad we are, they might actually get a better India that they keep boasting about!
in the subcontinent charity doesn't come free. .