Mumbai court rejects Ritu Tawde plea in 2016 school teacher assault case

A Mumbai court has refused to discharge city Mayor and BJP corporator Ritu Tawde in a 2016 case of assault on two school teachers, citing the statements of the victims as sufficient material to "frame charges" against her. The other witnesses also stated that Tawde had assaulted the teachers, Additional Sessions Judge Y P Manathka noted in the ruling on Tuesday. The incident took place on July 29, 2016, at an Urdu medium school of the city civic body in the Vakola area. According to the prosecution, the conflict erupted over the "sudden transfer" of a lady teacher who was reportedly battling cancer.

Tawde, along with six others, allegedly entered the school and engaged in a heated exchange with the management over the teacher's transfer, despite suffering from cancer, the prosecution said. Further, the police alleged the accused started hurling abuses at the management and assaulted two school teachers. A First Information Report (FIR) was registered on August 11, 2016, and the defence termed the 13-day delay as "unexplained".

Tawde, in her plea, claimed her presence at the spot was "coincidental and unrelated to the alleged mob incident". She claimed her status as a BJP corporator appears to have been misused by the "complainant (school headmistress) to gain undue publicity".

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"The complainant, upon learning of the applicant's political identity, acted with malice and ulterior motives to falsely implicate the applicant (Tawde) in order to lend weight to her otherwise personal grievance," the corporator claimed. The police, represented by additional public prosecutor Iqbal Solkar, however, contended that the victims' statement clearly revealed Tawde had assaulted the two teachers by slapping them.

School is a place where students get lessons of life, but at the very place the quarrel took place, and therefore said the act should be viewed seriously, the prosecution submitted. After considering the case facts, the judge noted that the "victims have categorically named the applicant to be the person who beat them by hand inside the school". The court highlighted that other witnesses, too, stated that Tawde had assaulted the teachers. "This is more than sufficient to frame charges against the applicant," the court ruled, while dismissing Tawde's plea.