PATNA

Days after a former inmate of a shelter home for women in Bihar’s capital moved the Patna High Court, another woman has filed a formal complaint with the women’s police station in Patna against the shelter home superintendent, alleging pathetic conditions at the facility, police said.

The woman, who hails from Bakhtiyarpur area, lodged a complaint against the shelter home administration with assistance from volunteers of a non-government organisation, Mahila Vikas Manch (MVM), on Tuesday. In the complaint, she claimed to have spent nearly four years at the shelter home and said she was subjected to various kinds of physical and mental abuse at the behest of in-charge superintendent Vandana Gupta.

C Kumari, station house officer (SHO) of the women’s police station in Patna, said a first information report (FIR) has been lodged. “This is the first FIR against the shelter home. Another woman had come to the police station with similar complaint, but she did not submit any written statement, like the one done today,” said the SHO .

MVM functionary Beena Manavi, however, said that the first woman had to move HC after the police and the district administration refused to record her statement at the women’s police station. “The first victim might record her statement before the division bench of the court, comprising Chief Justice Sanjay Karol and Justice S Kumar, on Friday,” Manavi said.

On February 1, HC had directed the Juvenile Justice Monitoring Committee (JJMC) to file a public interest litigation (PIL) on the basis of different reports, including the one submitted by the Juvenile Justice Board (JJB) last year, on the matter. The court had, in its initial order on February 2, also noted that district judge of Patna, who was reportedly sent the JJB report, did not communicate the matter relating to anomalies and complaints against the shelter home to the JJMC.

On Monday last, the court had pulled up the officials of the social welfare department (SWD) for their reluctance to act swiftly and comply with its orders.

Officials of the SWD said they were waiting for the direction of the HC to act, as the case had become complicated and the report submitted by the SWD director dismissed the contention of the victim as false and fabricated.

Manavi, however, said three to four former inmates were in her touch and are ready to record their statements with the police or in the court, if they see any hope for action against the superintendent and other officials and staff involved in the sexual abuse.

Patna’s senior superintendent of police MS Dhillon did not respond to calls and messages.