Angry parents protest after the rape of a six-year-old in a school in Bangalore
Anger over a six-year-old girl's alleged rape in an elite Bangalore school is believed to have cost the city's police chief his job. Commissioner Raghavendra Auradkar has been transferred at a time the IT city seems to be battling a spurt in crime.
Additional Director General of Police MN Reddy has replaced Mr Auradkar, who had informed reporters yesterday about the first arrest in the rape of a first grade student at the city's elite Vibgyor High School.
Mustafa or Munna, 30, a roller skating instructor, was arrested on Sunday, a week after the crime was reported by the child's parents. On his laptop and mobile, the police found videos of children being raped, downloaded from the internet.
The father of a three-year-old girl, Mustafa had been training children at Vibgyor since 2011. The police say they are investigating whether he had abused other children. He had reportedly been fired from the school where he worked before, Deen's Academy.
While they are still looking for a second accused, the police say the school may also be charged, either in a separate FIR or the same.
Hundreds of parents in the IT hub have taken to the streets to demand tough action, not just against the alleged attackers but also against the school for not protecting the child.
Karnataka's Congress government has also faced opposition demands for the resignation of its home minister KJ George.
Sources say the police chief's exit was more or less a given.
Mr Auradkar had been under a cloud over a series of incidents.
On July 11, a 22-year-old girl was raped in her friend's car after being kidnapped by a five-member gang. The main accused was the son of a Bahujan Samaj Party or BSP politician.
About a week after that, a 15-year-old girl was allegedly gang-raped in Hennur in the city.
In May, a senior Karnataka police was accused of taking photographs of women without their consent at a coffee shop.