Mumbai: With a view to curb harassment
faced by women commuters, the Indian Railways on Wednesday informed
the Bombay High Court that it has started recruitment process
to fill up 1,198 vacancies in the Railway Protection Force
(RPF) and would also appoint additional home guards to ensure
their safety.
"Vacancies of RPF posts are being filled up. The
entire process of recruitment and training would be completed
within six to eight months. Apart from RPF personnel,
additional home guards are also being recruited. Out of the
300 home guards, 150 would be lady officials," Railways
counsel Beni Chatterji told the court.
A division bench of Chief Justice Mohit Shah and
Justice Roshan Dalvi was hearing a suo-moto public interest
litigation based on a newspaper report which alleged that the
Government Railway Police (GRP) had refused to register the
complaint of a 25-year-old woman who was allegedly molested in
a local train in the wee hours on June 19.
The court had on the last hearing asked railways to
consider recruiting more personnel considering the increase in
number of sexual harassment cases at railway stations and on
trains.
Additional government pleader Rajesh Behere told the
court that Vashi railway police probing into the molestation
case has interrogated 75 persons and are going through CCTV
footage of Nerul railway station where the accused had
allegedly boarded the train.
"The police have drawn an inference that since the
accused was speaking fluent English and was a chain smoker he
must be a call centre employee. There are around seven call
centres in Navi Mumbai. Police is looking into this angle
also," Behere said.
He further said that the inquiry initiated against two
GRP officials, who refused to lodge the complaint, has been
completed and their annual increment is being withheld.
"A fine of Rs 500 each has also been imposed on other
constables who were supposed to be on duty that night but were
absent," Behere said.
The chief justice asked Maharashtra government to
ensure there is no laxity on the part of police officers who
are on duty. The matter has been adjourned till December.
PTI
First Published: Wednesday, October 12, 2011, 19:16