Sunil Rastogi confessed to molesting hundreds of schoolgirls over a period of 12 years.
Amid shock after the arrest of a paedophile who assaulted hundreds of schoolgirls over a period of 12 years without being caught, Union Minister Maneka Gandhi today said that two years ago, she had proposed a national record of sex offenders, but there still isn't one.
Asked whether the ball was in the Home Ministry's court, Mrs Gandhi said: "Yes, they have to move on it." She also said she would ask External Affairs Minister Sushma Swaraj whether visa applicants can be asked on any record of a sexual offence.
The Minister of Women and Child Development had suggested a national register to track those convicted of sex offences, regardless of age, and considerably strengthen the surveillance system.
Her comments came in the backdrop of the arrest of 38-year-old tailor Sunil Rastogi and his alleged confession that he has assaulted hundreds in Delhi, Uttar Pradesh and Uttarakhand.
Rastogi, a father of five including three daughters, had been jailed for six months in 2006. In countries like the US and Britain, he would have been tracked for a lifetime.
As perceived by the minister, the national register will have all details on the convict and track every update in his life. Sexual offenders have to report to authorities routinely and keep them informed about their plans. "The register should be maintained throughout the life of the convict," the minister had said when she first put out the suggestion.
Rastogi has told the police that he would wait for schoolgirls on their way home, take them to deserted spots on some excuse and assault them.
"I don't know what would come over me," he told reporters, asked about his free run from 2004.
The police are baffled that Rastogi, who travelled between Uttar Pradesh and Delhi, escaped arrest all this time despite being a repeat offender.
He was caught when the police were investigating three cases reported since December.
The pattern was similar - nine or 10 year-olds lured away and attacked. CCTV footage from various spots revealed Rastogi to the police.