The Bombay High Court on Thursday orally asked the Maharashtra government not to appoint another education officer in Thane in place of Balasaheb Rakshe, who was suspended following sexual assault on two minor girls in a school in Badlapur on August 14.
A bench of Justices AS Chandurkar and Rajesh Patil asked the state government not to appoint another education officer, while hearing a petition by Rakshe challenging the August 23 order of the Maharashtra Administrative Tribunal (MAT) refusing to grant him interim relief against his suspension.
He approached the HC alleging that his suspension order was “politically motivated” and he was made a “scapegoat”. Pursuant to earlier HC directions, an affidavit was filed by the state government asserting that Rakshe was suspended after perusal of the available material and initiation of a Departmental Enquiry (DE) against him.
The affidavit, by Joint Secretary, School Education and Sports Department, Tikaram Karpate, said the petitioner was responsible for the safety and security of school children, and had to go through the proposed Departmental Enquiry.
