PATNA: Social welfare department principal secretary Atul Prasad during a joint presser with DGP KS Dwivedi on Tuesday said that FIR in Muzaffarpur children home rape case was registered after delay of more than a month of receiving TISS social audit report as the department was discussing the matter with TISS official to decide how legal course of action could be taken in the case.

Prasad was asked that why the department delayed almost for a month for lodging the FIR when the TISS audit report had clearly indicated about sexual and physical abuse of minor girls at the government children home at Muzaffarpur.

“We were discussing the matter with TISS officials that how to take legal course of action in the children home case. It was only due to it, FIR was lodged on May 31,” Prasad said accepting that the audit report was received in the month of April this year.

He also said that an internal workshop of concerned officials of the department was conducted on May 26 on the issue.

“We did not want the report to get leaked in public domain ultimately benefiting the accused in the case. That why time was taken to lodge the FIR,” Prasad said when asked if delay in lodging FIR had helped accused persons to get rid of major evidences against them in the case.

When asked that why no steps were taken when field officials of the department had written almost two years back to the higher authorities for installation of CCTV cameras at the children home (balika grih) in Muzaffarpur and other places, Prasad said that CCTV would now be installed at such places.

In reply to the question that has the system of government to monitor such homes had collapsed, Prasad said that it was the department only which had decided to conduct an audit of homes in June last year.

Meanwhile, DGP Dwivedi also said that now government has decided to conduct periodical inspection of such government homes, especially where children live, help of TISS and UNICEF .

