A deputy collector rank officer in tribal-dominated Jhabua district of Madhya Pradesh was arrested and sent to jail on Tuesday on charges of sexually harassing adolescent tribal girls during an inspection of a government hostel on Sunday.
The officer, Sunil Kumar Jha was suspended by divisional commissioner of Indore, Pawan Sharma.
The district administration acted in a swift manner in the case, even as the state is witnessing uproar over several incidents of atrocities against tribals and other underprivileged persons in the recent past. Arrest of a senior government official soon after the registration of FIR is not very common in the state.
A complaint had been lodged against Jha—posted as sub-divisional magistrate in Jhabua district headquarters—on Monday with district collector Tanvi Hooda, by the superintendent of the tribal girls’ hostel, Kanya Ashram, based on the complaints of the girl inmates after Jha had completed his inspection of the hostel.
The complaint mentioned that the officer not only did ask inappropriate and sexually-laced questions to the girls and make such comments, but also touched at least three girls – two of them aged 13 and one aged 11 – inappropriately.
On the district collector’s directive, deputy superintendent of police Varsha Solanki conducted an investigation into the matter and found the allegations true. The collector then recommended suspension of the accused officer to the divisional commissioner and also directed registration of an FIR against him. The FIR was registered on Tuesday morning under various sections related to sexual harassment, molestation and intimidation under IPC, Protection of Children from Sexual Offences (POCSO) Act and the SC/ST (prevention of atrocities) Act.
Jha was arrested soon after and presented in the POCSO court, where he was sent to judicial custody.
Congress attacks government
In-charge of the MP Congress organizations and fronts, Shobha Oza attacked the BJP government over ‘the blast of incidents of atrocities against tribal people’. She said that the sexual harassment of adolescent girl students by the SDM during inspection of a government hostel is unpardonable and shameful. She said that as per National Crime Records Bureau (NCRB) statistics, Madhya Pradesh under BJP government has been repeatedly reporting highest incidents of atrocities against tribal people, but the sudden spurt in the past few days is very worrying. She said it is clear that under the Shivraj Singh Chouhan government there was no value of the lives, honour and respect of the tribal people
Former president of Madhya Pradesh Congress, Kantilal Bhuria, who hails from Jhabua and is a tribal himself, sought termination of services of the accused officer.
