Gang rape at orphanage. High Court raps CWC for failing to do it's duty.

In Mumbai, 27th March the High Court has uphold the conviction of three persons for gang raping five mentally challenged girls in an orphanage run by them. The Bombay High Court raps on the State  Child Welfare Committee (CWC) for failing to do its duty.
A division bench of Justices R V More and Anuja Prabhudessai upheld the conviction of Ramchandra Karanjule, Nanabhau Karanjule and Khandu Kasbe on charges of gang-raping and molesting five girls, including three minors, at an orphanage, run by private trust ‘Kalyani Mahila Bal Seva Sanstha’ at Kalamboli in Navi Mumbai. Ramchandra Karanjule and his wife were trustees of the orphanage.
Bombay High Court has put the blame on the State Child Welfare Committee for failing to do its job properly and to keep an eye on the working of the orphanage. It gave 120 pages judgments on March 11.
The High Court said, “The CWC is a primary body for addressing needs of children in need of care and protection. The CWC is required to play a role of watchdog at the district level and ensure that standards of care are maintained and the incidents of exploitation and abuse in all child care institutions are addressed”.
“In the present case, facts clearly indicate that the CWC members have not acted in the best interest of the child. The insensitive role of CWC in adopting ‘I see no wrong and hear no wrong’ greatly perturbs our judicial conscience,” the bench observed in its order.
The Bombay High Court even stated, “Had they (CWC) performed their duties sincerely and with sensitivity, the truth would have been unearthed and these young helpless vulnerable victims would not have been physically, sexually and emotionally traumatised”.
The High Court while upholding the conviction of these three criminals observed that the prosecution has proved that the girls were raped. The Court observed that Ramchandra, as the director of the orphanage portrayed himself as a “saviour, protector and guardian” of such girls who were abandoned by heir families.
The Bombay High Court further stated, “The girls were totally dependent on him for food, clothing, shelter and the other basic necessities for survival. They had nowhere to go and no one to confide in or complain to and had to accept the situation as part of their life, by suppressing their feelings, emotions and anger.It was only after the committee appointed by this court took the girls into confidence and encouraged them to give vent to their feelings that they expressed their fear, shame and anger”.