Parents, school muddled Goa child rape probe, says MLA

Parents of seven-year-old rape victim in Goa were responsible for police failure to investigate the case and arrest the culprit, ruling Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) legislator Carlos Almeida said Tuesday.

"The case was mishandled by parents. For whole day, police were involved in crowd management. Police lost time to conduct the proper investigation," Almeida said in the assembly, even as the opposition as well as the girl's parents expressed disappointment over Goa Police's inability to arrest the rapist for four months now.

The child was raped in the toilet of a school run by the Mormugao Port Trust (MPT) in January this year. The incident caused uproar after the school authorities delayed informing police about the rape.

While the incident occurred around noon, the school was besieged by wellwishers of the parents and other locals by afternoon after news spread that the school was hesitant about informing police.

The school's head mistress and other staffers were subsequently arrested and charged with negligence, after they washed the victim's private parts and washed the toilet where the rape occurred, washing away all evidence.

The accused is still untraced.