Bihar Shelter Home NGO in centre of rape scandal bagged another beggars’ home project
The order for inspection of the building to be used as the beggars’ shelter home was issued on May 31, the day an FIR was lodged against 11 persons including Brajesh Thakur, the chief of the NGO.
Patna, July 29: The NGO which runs the Muzaffarpur shelter home for destitute girls where 29 of the 35 inmates (in the ages of 7-15 years) were sexually abused, was sanctioned another project by the Bihar welfare department for running a beggars’ home in Patna, officials said.
The NGO, however, was removed from the project after the allegations of sexual offences of the girls in Muzaffarpur became public, Social Welfare Department director Raj Kumar said.
“The department neither gave any work order nor signed any agreement with ‘Seva Sankalp Evam Vikas Samiti’ for the project. It had only issued a letter for carrying out inspection of the building which was to be used for running the beggars’ home,” Kumar told PTI.
The alleged sexual exploitation of girls at the state-funded Muzaffarpur shelter home was first highlighted in an audit report submitted by Tata Institute of Social Science, Mumbai, to the state’s social welfare department in April.
The order for inspection of the building to be used as the beggars’ shelter home was issued on May 31, the day an FIR was lodged against 11 persons including Brajesh Thakur, the chief of the NGO.
“A selection committee had chosen some NGOs in April for running the beggars’ shelter home under the Mukhya Mantri Bhikshavriti Niwaran Yojana. We removed the NGO from the project on June 6 after the allegations of sexual exploitation surfaced,” Kumar said.
Meanwhile, the CBI has taken over investigation into the abuse of inmates at the Muzaffarpur shelter home. The case relates to mental, physical and sexual exploitation of the girls at shelter home., Muzaffarpur.
