Bihar Chief Minister Nitish Kumar on Thursday, 26 July, ordered a CBI probe in the Muzaffarpur shelter home sexual assault case where 40 girls were allegedly exploited sexually.
The news comes just two days after Bihar Director General of Police, KS Dwivedi had rebuffed any need of a CBI inquiry.
"I am fully satisfied with the progress of police investigation into the case so far and no CBI investigation is needed," the police chief had said, adding that 10 accused have already been arrested and efforts are underway to nab an absconder.
He confirmed that the medical examination of 29 of the 42 inmates corroborated that they were sexually exploited.
Two inmates could not undergo the medical test as they were unwell, he had said at a press conference.
RJD had Demanded CBI Inquiry
Opposition RJD had raised the issue of alleged sexual exploitation of girls in the state-funded shelter home in the state assembly and legislative council on Tuesday, 24 July, and demanded a CBI inquiry into it.
Leader of the Opposition in the assembly Tejashwi Yadav alleged that the scandal involved many "well-connected people" whom the Nitish Kumar government was trying to shield.
Opposition leader in the Legislative Council Rabri Devi too raised the issue in the Upper House.
The CM, yielding to the opposition demands, has now handed over the investigation of the case from the Chief Secretary, Principal Home Secretary and DGP to the CBI.
Bihar government will also reportedly request the Supreme Court to monitor the CBI probe.
No Mortal Remains Found, Says DGP
The DGP said that three inmates had alleged that a girl had been killed and buried on the campus of the shelter home after she resisted sexual exploitation, but that no mortal remains were found when the place was excavated yesterday on a court's permission.
He said the services of a sniffer dog was also used to find out if there was any body buried nearby, but that too yielded no positive result. However, a soil sample from the place has been sent for forensic testing, he said.
The identity of the inmate allegedly killed and buried is not available as the complainants were not able to provide it, the DGP said.
The DGP said as per the current records of the shelter home, only one inmate is missing and she has since been traced by the police.
As far as the cases of the four inmates, said to have earlier run away, and the death of three others are concerned, he said, they were being verified.
Speaking at the same press conference, the Principal Secretary, Social Welfare Department, Atul Prasad, said the state government had itself got a social audit done by the Mumbai-based Tata Institute of Social Sciences and had taken prompt action on its report about sexual exploitation of inmates.
"Details were not disclosed at the very outset as taking effective action against those involved would not have been possible," he claimed.
Muzaffarpur Senior Superintendent of Police, Harpreet Kaur, had told PTI on Tuesday, 24 July, that the excavation was conducted in the presence of all the three complainants, who were girls in the age group of 10-12 years.
The state-funded shelter home was sealed in June when an FIR was lodged in light of a social audit report that suggested that the inmates were being sexually exploited. Its premises were also sealed.
The NGO running the shelter home has been blacklisted and the inmates have been shifted to shelter homes in other districts.
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