The Bombay High Court on Thursday directed the state government to arrange assistance to provide shelter and employment opportunities to the parents of Akshay Shinde, an accused in the case. Badlapur sexual assault casepossibly through NGOs.
A bench of Justices Revati Mohite-Dere and Prithviraj Chavan was hearing a ‘suo motu’ petition filed in August this year after the court took note of the public ruckus caused by the negligence of the Bhadrapur police.
The family worked as manual scavengers, so the court even urged their own lawyer, Amit Katarnaware, to use his good social connections to ensure they found a respectable job without having to Doing something technically prohibited in India.
The judge also said Akshay Shinde’s parents should not be further punished for their son’s alleged actions.
During Thursday’s hearing, in which Akshay Shinde’s parents were present, the court directed everyone not connected with the case to leave the court.
The judge noted that while the state claimed the Hinds did not need police protection, the family said they had previously received threats to their lives following sexual assault cases and public outrage, although such threats have now diminished. They said their home was also raided and the government subsequently provided security for their home.
However, the judge found that due to the threats, the family had moved out of Bhadrapur and were now living in Kalyan.
The judge therefore asked what was the point of the government guarding the house without providing protection for the family.
The judge also asked the state government to ensure security does not interfere with families’ livelihoods.
The sexual assault case involves serious allegations against Shinde, who allegedly sexually assaulted two minors in a school toilet in Bhadrapur. There was a massive protest in Bhadrapur over the way the police handled the case.
After Shinde was arrested and died in a police shootout in September, his parents had to live on sidewalks and bus stops outside the train station.