Multiple students including girls and boys with sensory and communication disabilities at the Red Cross School for the Blind, Deaf and Mute in Paramanandapur, Kalahandi district, Odisha, have accused a male warden, Sandhya Darshan Mahapatra, of sexually and physically abusing them.
The allegations include inappropriate touching of female students, dragging them against their will, and punishment of boys who tried to report the conduct. Visual footage, written complaints and student gestures have emerged as evidence of distress.
District authorities have constituted a high-level committee, led by the Additional District Magistrate, to investigate the claims. Officials say a detailed report will be submitted to the District Collector and have pledged strict legal action if the allegations are substantiated. The case has sparked widespread concern about child protection and institutional accountability.
Disturbing Allegations at a School for the Differently-Abled
The controversy centres on the Red Cross School for the Blind, Deaf and Mute, a government-run residential school in the Paramanandapur area of Kalahandi district that cares for students with multiple disabilities. According to official reports, students lodged complaints alleging that Sandhya Darshan Mahapatra, who worked as a warden at the institution, engaged in inappropriate physical contact with female students touching them in ways that were unwelcome and intrusive.
A number of students many of whom rely on gestures or written notes to communicate because they are deaf, mute or blind reportedly signalled their distress through video clips and complaints. One of the alleged videos released to authorities shows Mahapatra touching a girl’s shoulder and back in a secluded area of the school despite her unwillingness, fuelling outrage among parents and disability rights advocates.
Boys at the school have also come forward, alleging that when they tried to report these incidents to teachers or administrators, they faced harsh physical and mental punishment instead of protection. Such claims have intensified concerns that the school’s internal safeguards may have failed vulnerable students.
Official Inquiry and Promises of Action
Following the emergence of these allegations, Kalahandi District Child Protection Officer Shailendu Mahapatra confirmed that the authorities have received multiple complaints against staff members at the school. He clarified that a committee headed by the Additional District Magistrate (ADM-General) has already been constituted to conduct a thorough investigation.
According to the district official, the preliminary probe has been completed and the committee’s findings will soon be submitted to the District Collector to determine the next course of action. He emphasised that details are being kept confidential at this stage to protect the integrity of the investigation and the privacy of the students involved.
“We have received complaints against some employees regarding the harassment and sexual exploitation of children,” the official was quoted as saying. “If the allegations against the concerned individual are proven to be true, strict legal action will be taken according to law,” he added, signalling that the matter will be treated as a serious criminal offence under existing child-protection legislation.
Legal experts and child rights activists have called for independent oversight and transparency in the investigation process, arguing that cases involving marginalised children require extra care to ensure justice and prevent further trauma. Some disability advocates also noted that communication barriers make it harder for such students to report abuse, underscoring the need for trained personnel and accessible grievance mechanisms in all institutions serving differently-abled children.
Vulnerable Students and Institutional Safeguards
The Red Cross School is meant to be a safe haven for students with sensory impairments, offering residential care alongside education. However, the current allegations have raised serious questions about supervision, staff training and the mechanisms by which students can report misconduct.
Parents and local residents have expressed deep distress and anger, saying that schools should be places of safety, learning and trust not fear and exploitation. Some parents have demanded that the state government ensure better oversight, including regular background checks on staff, timely grievance redressal and mandatory training on child protection and disability sensitivity.
The case has also drawn attention to broader systemic gaps. Safeguards such as Child Protection Officers, internal complaint cells, counsellors and easy communication channels are meant to protect children in such settings but appear to have fallen short in this instance. Disability rights advocates say this incident must be a wake-up call for authorities to strengthen policies and practices in all residential schools in Odisha and elsewhere.
Experts note that children with disabilities are already at higher risk of neglect and abuse due to communication barriers, social stigma and limited access to external support, making robust protective frameworks all the more essential. The lack of timely reporting, in many cases, reflects not just institutional failure but also societal apathy towards the rights and dignity of these children.
The Logical Indian’s Perspective
This deeply troubling case if the allegations are proven lays bare a broader crisis in safeguarding some of the most vulnerable children in our society. Schools and residential care centres have an obligation, moral and legal, to protect every child in their care, especially those who cannot easily speak up. The wounds inflicted by abuse are lifelong, and the failure to protect children with disabilities is a collective failure of institutions, communities and policymakers.
