Special judge Vinay Joshi on Friday rejected the ad-interim bail of Pradeep Ghotaskar (50), a teacher who was arrested by the Chatuhshrungi police on Wednesday for his alleged involvement in molesting 22 students of a reputed school in Baner where he teaches skill-writing.Ghotaskar was produced in the court for remanding hearing as his police custody ended on Friday. The court remanded him in judicial custody.Soon after that, Ghotaskar’s lawyer Prasad Kulkarni moved an ad-interim bail application on the ground that Ghotaskar is highly reputed and if interim protection is not granted, he would require to go to jail. Kulkarni also assured that if granted ad-interim bail, Gothaskar is ready to cooperate with the investigations.Additional Public Prosecutor Pratap Jadhav argued, “Ghotaskar has been charged under the relevant sections of PCSOA in which the punishment is extended to maximum seven years.”Rejecting the bail plea, the special judge observed, “I find no special circumstances so as to accord any special treatment to Ghotaskar to save him from the jail because it is a phenomenal consequence that during the pendency of bail, all the persons who are levelled with criminal charges are required to remain in jail. Since no special circumstances are brought to exercise such powers of grant of interim bail, which are to be sparingly used, I find no substance. Moreover, prosecution as well as investigating officer is directed to produce the papers tomorrow and to make final submissions on bail application and this application deserves to be rejected.”Gothaskar was arrested in a joint operation by the crime branch sleuths and Chatuhshrungi police on charges of allegedly sexually assaulting 22 female students of the school over the past two months. The school authorities, after conducting an inquiry against Ghotaskar, had lodged a complaint against him.The incident came to light after a few teachers of the school came to know about his bad deeds after they interacted with the students and their parents.The victim students study in standard V where the teacher allegedly sexually abused them in the classroom during their physical training sessions.About 20 - 25 girls gave oral and written statements to the school authorities and subsequently the statements were verified by the police confirming that the students had been sexually assaulted. Ghotaskar has been slapped with relevant sections Protection of Children from Sexual Offences Act, 2012 (PCSOA).

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