NCPCR Chief Priyank Kanoongo (L) and Rahul Gandhi (R) (X)
Priyank Kanoongo, the chairperson of the National Commission for Protection of Child Rights (NCPCR), has raised serious concerns about the appalling conditions in an unlicensed orphanage situated in the Anand Bhawan complex in Prayagraj, allegedly run by the Gandhi family. The orphanage, where Rahul Gandhi used to stay during election campaigns, has come under scrutiny for lacking basic amenities and receiving foreign funds.
In a scathing post on social media, Kanoongo revealed, “There are no doors in the restrooms of the adolescent orphan girls in the unlicensed orphanage maintained by the Gandhi family in Prayagraj’s Anand Bhawan complex. Orphan girls were not adopted by families, and the orphanage also received foreign funds. All of this was discovered during an inspection conducted by me and the National Commission for Protection of Child Rights, and an FIR was launched.”
He emphasised that the situation did not bring national disgrace but instead exposed the truth about the party and the Gandhi family. Kanoongo urged Rahul Gandhi to refrain from referring to the Gandhi family as the “country” and attached a link to a news report about the orphanage, along with a picture of a tweet by Rahul Gandhi with the children present there.
This development occurred shortly after Congress Rajya Sabha MP Vivek Krishna Tankha accused the NCPCR of ‘sensationalism.’ Tankha urged the Modi government to exercise control over the NCPCR, cautioning against it becoming “wayward and sensational” if India aims to become a global power.
It is noteworthy that the Uttar Pradesh government was previously directed by the NCPCR to relocate the inmates of the Children National Institute, a shelter home for girls in Anand Bhawan, following revelations of serious irregularities and illegalities in its operations in 2020.
The NCPCR inspection, prompted by a social audit, exposed the dilapidated state of the girls residing in the orphanage established by Jawaharlal Nehru in 1947. The institution, operated by a trust and located in the Swaraj Bhawan neighborhood of Anand Bhawan, was referred to as “one of the most premier and oldest in India” in a letter from the Commission to the state.
The report highlighted inadequate basic maintenance, lack of doors in bathrooms, and insufficient staff to care for the girls. It recommended relocating the girls until the shelter home’s conditions are improved. Girls at the institute reportedly receive only one meal per day, relying on outside donations for additional meals. Kanoongo expressed shock at the serious violations of the Juvenile Justice (Care and Protection of Children) Act and irregularities in the institute’s operation.
Leave a Comment