31 January,2024 12:10 PM IST | Nagpur | mid-day online correspondent
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Nagpur Police arrested a school teacher for allegedly filming videos of women using washrooms at an industrial expo held in the city. The accused was identified as one Mangesh Vinayakrao Khapre (37) who was filming women at the expo held on the Nagpur University campus in the Ambazari area.
According to a PTI report, the accused was reportedly discreetly filming women through a washroom window using his mobile phone during the three-day 'Advantage Vidarbha' expo that concluded on Monday.
The incident was brought to light after a woman reported it to the event organisers, sparking a police inquiry. Khapre, an art instructor at a famous private school and designer of the festival entrance, was identified by Ambazari police using CCTV footage, reported PTI.
The report added that Khapre's phone was taken during his arrest, and a subsequent check uncovered footage of nearly a dozen women recorded over the previous three days. Some clips were deleted. Authorities assume the teacher has mental health difficulties.
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A case has been lodged against Khapre under pertinent sections of the Indian Penal Code and the Information Technology Act. However, on Tuesday, when the accused was arraigned before a local judge, he was granted bail, officials told PTI.
Disturbingly, Khapre has a history of filming women in public restrooms, with roughly 30 such recordings recorded on his mobile phone. These recordings, dating back to 2022, reveal a pattern of inappropriate activity.
Meanwhile, in another incident from Mumbai, a special court sentenced a 28-year-old school teacher to five years of rigorous imprisonment for sexually assaulting minor girl students. Special Judge Seema Jadhav, who passed the order on Tuesday, noted that a teacher is expected to act like a protector and the accused, with his heinous acts has left a lifelong 'psychological and emotional impact' on the girls.
Per the PTI report, the accused worked as a teacher at a Govandi school and was held guilty under relevant provisions of the Protection of Children From Sexual Offences (POSCO) Act by the court.
The report cited the judgement, it read, "Upon evaluating the testimony of victims and other witnesses, the prosecution has been able to prove its case beyond reasonable doubt that the accused has committed non-penetrative sexual assault, as defined in section 7 of the POCSO Act, upon the victims below 12 years repeatedly."