Delhi Deputy CM Manish Sisodia (File)Nine inmates, including eight Nepalese nationals, of a Delhi government-run shelter home for girls went missing on the intervening night of December 1-2, police said Monday.
Deputy Chief Minister Manish Sisodia has directed the suspension of the superintendent of the home and an officer of the Women and Child Development (WCD) Department for “lapses”. The issue was brought to his notice by the Delhi Commission for Women (DCW). The WCD special director did not respond to calls and messages.
“The matter of nine girls going missing… is extremely serious and unfortunate. The Department of Women and Child Development has failed… to provide a safe and secure environment for minor girls who were placed under the protection of the state,” Sisodia, who holds the WCD portfolio, wrote.
Joint CP (eastern range) Ravindra Yadav said the Nepal Embassy has been informed of the incident. “The ninth inmate is a minor from Bihar,” he said.
DCW chief Swati Maliwal, in a note to Sisodia, said the inmates were victims of human trafficking and were transferred from a Dwarka shelter home to this home in May on orders of the Child Welfare Committee.
She also levelled allegations of “abuse and corporal punishment” against the superintendent. “… It is directed that the District Officer, Northeast, WCD, and Superintendent… are immediately placed under suspension and their charge is given to competent and sensitive officers,” said Sisodia.
