Two four-year-old girls were allegedly sexually assaulted by a male member of the school’s cleaning staff on August 12 and 13 at a well-known local school in Badlapur. Following an alleged delay in action by the school administration and police in registering an FIR, the locals erupted in protests. When Minister Girish Mahajan urged demonstrators to end their rail blockade, the unified and angry crowd chanted “Phaasi! Phaasi!” (demanding capital punishment) for the accused.
 
The case came to light when one of the victims refused to attend school and showed signs of extreme anxiety and fear. Subsequent medical examinations confirmed sexual assault, and it was later discovered that another girl had also been abused under similar circumstances. According to the parents’ complaints, the accused, 23-year-old Akshay Shinde, allegedly committed these acts in the school toilets.

The protesters barge into school, throw stones (right) the vandalised school property