School van driver arrested for rape attempt on minor girl

Bhubaneswar: In an abominable act, the driver of a school van was arrested on charges of attempting to rape a minor girl student of a reputed school in Gangapara area under Chandaka police limits in Bhubaneswar today. The accused has been identified as Bijay Moharana.

According to sources, the accused attempted to rape the girl inside the toilet. But the girl somehow managed to escape from his clutches and disclosed the incident to her parents. After coming to know about the incident, the girl’s parents filed a complaint with the police. Police, in turn, took the girl to the spot and launched an investigation.

“We are still investigating under what circumstances the accused committed the crime. Spot verification is also on. From the statements recorded, we have found that a rape attempt was made,” said Bhubaneswar DCP Satyabrata Bhoi.

“During our investigation, we will look into all aspects, including any violation of guidelines given to schools. In case we find that the guidelines need to be more stringent, we will definitely propose the same,” said Police Commissioner YB Khurania.

“The parents of the girl didn’t inform the school authorities and we came to know about the incident from the police in the evening. We are fully cooperating with the police in the investigation and have submitted the hard disk carrying the recording of CCTV footage,” said a teacher of the school.

In the meantime, the incident has sent ripples in the city and has raised serious concerns about the safety and security of school kids within school premises.