By IANS,
Chandigarh : The Chandigarh administration Wednesday began a magisterial probe into the reasons behind the Sacred Heart School here expelling teenage molestation victim Ruchika Girhotra in September 1990.
“Sub-Divisional Magistrate Prerna Puri was in the school today (Wednesday) to conduct an inquiry into this matter. The school authorities cooperated with her and we are ready to extend any kind of help to the administration,” said Father Thomas, spokesperson of Sacred Heart School in Sector 26 here.
“It is all very unfortunate what happened to Ruchika. We believe that it is not possible to expel any student under any kind of pressure. We are trying to ascertain the allegations of expulsion and also whether she (Ruchika) was withdrawn from the school by her parents,” he added.
Chandigarh home secretary Ram Niwas, who is also the education secretary, had Tuesday ordered a magisterial probe into the expulsion of Ruchika from this leading all girls school. Niwas had told the inquiry officer to submit the report within a week.
Ruchika was expelled from the school in September 1990, just a month after she was molested by former Haryana Director General of Police (DGP) S.P.S. Rathore Aug 12, 1990.
Ruchika was a Class 10 student at that time and coincidently Rathore’s daughter was her classmate in the same school.
At one stage, the school had cited non-payment of monthly fees as a reason behind Ruchika’s expulsion but Rathore had used this expulsion to counter the chargesheet against him by claiming that the teenager had been expelled on moral grounds.
A special Central Bureau of Investigation (CBI) court in Chandigarh had Dec 21 held Rathore guilty of molesting 15-year-old Ruchika in Panchkula town Aug 12, 1990 and sentenced him to a six-month prison term. However, Rathore was immediately granted bail.
The budding tennis player had committed suicide three years after the incident.