National Commission for Protection of Child Rights chairperson Priyank Kanoongo.
Credit: X/@KanoongoPriyank
Bengaluru: Bengaluru police have registered a case against Priyank Kanoongo, chairman of the National Commission for the Protection of Child Rights (NCPCR), after his recent statement that children at a city-based orphanage were living the “medieval Taliban life”.
The case was registered on November 21, following a complaint from Ashraf Khan, secretary of Darul Uloom Sayideeya Yateemkhana, in Kaval Bairasandra.
On November 20, Kanoongo, in a post on X (formerly Twitter), claimed that he conducted a surprise inspection of Darul Uloom Sayideeya Yateemkhana, which revealed “several irregularities”.
“About 200 orphan children have been kept here. Eight children are kept in a room of 100 square feet, 40 children live in five such rooms, and 16 children live in the corridor,” Kanoongo posted along with a video of the inspection.
“The remaining 150 children who offer namaz in the mosque sleep in two different halls at night. All 200 children study Islamic religious education in the Madrasa in these namaz halls throughout the day. No child is sent to school,” he posted.
Kanoongo further alleged that there was no playing equipment for children, they didn’t watch TV and young children were “innocent and scared”. “When they see the maulvi coming, they all stand still and close their eyes.”
“These children are living a medieval Taliban life, this life is not written for them in the Constitution,” Kanoongo wrote. “This is negligence of the Karnataka government and a violation of the Constitution. @NCPCR_ is taking cognizance, issuing notice to the Chief Secretary of the state.”
In its letter to the chief secretary, the NCPCR said that a case has been registered under Sections 42 (foster care), 34 (state government’s role in maintaining children’s homes), and 75 (punishment for abusing or neglecting child) of the Juvenile Justice (Care and Protection of Children) Act, and sought a report within a week, DH had reported.
Counter claims
Countering Kanoongo’s claims, Khan, the orphanage’s secretary, alleged that he entered the premises claiming to be from the Human Rights Commission and without permission on November 19, recorded a video on his phone and shared it on social media.
“He has compared us to the Taliban, and spread false news in order to disturb the peace and harmony,” Khan alleged in his complaint.
The DJ Halli police have registered the case under IPC sections 34 (acts done by several persons in furtherance of common intention), 447 (punishment for criminal trespass), 448 (punishment for house trespass), and 295A (deliberate and malicious acts, intended to outrage religious feelings of any class by insulting its religion or religious beliefs) and have begun a probe.