NAGPUR: The National Human Rights Commission (NHRC) on Friday issued a notice to the Maharashtra government after taking suo motu cognisance of the deaths of three tribal girls who were bitten by a snake inside their hostel at an ashram school in Gadchiroli district.
A day after the tragedy, chief minister Devendra Fadnavis ordered the permanent cancellation of the school’s licence and directed the administration to shift its students to another school. Co-guardian minister Ashish Jaiswal and tribal development minister Dr Ashok Uike also visited the school and evaluated its condition. The report has been sought on the circumstances leading to the deaths as well as the health status of the three students who survived the snakebite.
Three of the victims – aged eight, 12 and 14 — died while the other three were admitted to the Government Medical College and Hospital and Gadchiroli Civil Hospital. Tatpalliwar and Bhoyar were produced before a court in Gadchiroli on Thursday afternoon and remanded in magisterial custody for 15 days, Dhanora SDPO Jagdish Pande, who is investigating the case, said.
NHRC described the matter as a “serious issue of human rights violation” and directed the Maharashtra government to submit a detailed report within two weeks. The surviving students recovered and were discharged on Friday morning.
