The Naigaon police have arrested a 16-year-old school canteen worker for allegedly sexually harassing a seven-year-old girl near Mumbai. According to the police, the matter came to light when the victim refused to go to the canteen. “She complained to a teacher that an uncle in the canteen was not behaving properly with her. The teacher informed the principal and an FIR was registered against the accused,” the police said.

The FIR was registered based on the principal’s statement as the girl’s parents refused to file a complaint. According to the police, the survivor had tried to talk to her parents about the alleged harassment, but they did not take the matter seriously. The canteen owner told the police that the accused had been working at the canteen for about two months after she arrived in the city from Uttar Pradesh. “During the two months of working there, the accused inappropriately touched the girl four to five times. She told the teacher about it on August 22,” an officer said.

“We are checking the footage of 60-70 CCTV cameras on the campus to check if the accused has molested any other child,” said Naigaon Senior Inspector Ramesh Bhame. In another POCSO case, Vakola police arrested a 21-year-old for allegedly kidnapping and raping a 13-year-old girl. “They had met on social media. He kidnapped her, took her to Gujarat and raped her. The girl showed the accused’s photograph to her family and they approached the police,” said an officer from Vakola police station.