Lucknow
The Kanpur shelter home case in which 57 girls were found coronavirus positive, took a new turn on Monday when it emerged not 2 but 7 minors of the government-run facility are pregnant.
The district magistrate of Kanpur Brahm Dutt Tiwari told the media, “Total seven girls of the Rajkiya Balika Griha are pregnant, five of them are corona positive. They were already pregnant when they were brought to this shelter on the recommendation of the children welfare committee, from different districts. The investigation in the cases is on under the Protection of Children Under Sexual Offences Act (POCSO).”
On Sunday, district probation officer Ajit Kumar, in-charge of the women’s rescue home and reports to the district magistrate, had said two girls were pregnant.
The DM said, “A probe has been ordered. We will also investigate those who came to the shelter home in the last two months. The campus has been sealed, infected girls have been admitted to a government facility and non-infected girls have been sent to a quarantine centre.”
He insisted this case is not akin to the Muzaffarnagar (Bihar) shelter home. People are spreading rumours girls got pregnant at the shelter home. We could not access all the documents of the pregnant girls as the shelter home was sealed,” Tiwari said.
The initial probe has revealed shocking lapses on part of the district administration, believed to be the reason for the spread of deadly infection among so many girls. The shelter home meant for 100 girls allegedly housed 171 girls, compromising the social distancing norms. The administration stands accused of not isolating the non-infected girls and sealing the premises, as per the norms.
Sources say one girl tested positive on June 15. Two days later, 33 more tested positive. The administration, however, didn’t isolate the staff and the inmates. On June 19, 16 more persons tested positive. The building was sealed then.
A day later, 8 more girls tested positive — taking the total tally of infected girls in the premises to 58 including an employee.
Samajwadi Party chief Akhilesh Yadav sought a probe into the alleged physical exploitation of girls at a state-run shelter home, a day after 57 inmates, 5 of them pregnant, tested positive.
He tweeted in Hindi, “The news from the govt child protection home in Kanpur has created outrage in UP. There has been a disclosure of girls being pregnant. The govt should immediately start a probe against those involved in physical exploitation.”
Congress too expressed resolve to take up the case to its logical conclusion. The opposition alleged the home was in the news for all wrong reasons in the past too.
“One girl had committed suicide here six years ago,” a Samajwadi Party leader says.
