Minor Girls Molested by School Bus Driver in Wanwadi; Police Nab Accused Following Parents Complaint

By Tejas

Pune, October 3, 2024: A shocking incident has taken place in the Wanwadi area of Pune, where two minor girls were allegedly molested by a school bus driver. In this case, Wanwadi police have booked the accused under the Protection of Children from Sexual Offences (POCSO) Act and have arrested him.

The arrested accused has been identified as Sanjay Jeting Reddy. The parents of the girls have lodged a complaint against the accused at Wanwadi police station.

As per the police information, the victim girl studies at a private school in Wanwadi. A few days ago, the girl complained about the obscene behaviour of the school bus driver to her father. When the father of the girl enquired deeply into the case, the girl informed him that the school bus driver constantly touched her and one of her female friends inappropriately.

The next day, after dropping his daughter off at school, the girl’s father visited her friend’s house and informed her parents about the incident. After confirming the incident, they lodged a complaint against the accused bus driver at the police station.

Accordingly, Assistant Commissioner of Police Godse and Senior Police Inspector Sanjay Patange of Wanwadi Police Station started an investigation into the case and detained the accused bus driver.

While it is mandatory as per the rules to have a female attendant in the school bus, police are investigating whether there was any female present in the bus at the time of the incident. Police are also investigating whether there are any other girl victims in this incident.

However, following the revelation of the case, the anger was being expressed against the incident across the city. In the last month, similar incidents took place in Badlapur and Akola cities of Maharashtra. After these incidences, the question of girls’ safety in public spaces has again come to the fore.