Bengaluru daycare inside Capgemini campus under investigation for alleged systematic child abuse
Caregivers at a daycare centre located inside Capgemini’s Bengaluru campus had likely subjected young children to systematic abuse, a district child protection officer told NDTV on Thursday, as police registered a case against five caregivers.
Between 50 and 60 children enrolled at the centre
Probation Officer Tilakesh Kumar said 50 to 60 children were enrolled at the daycare, run for employees of the global consulting firm, with 15 to 20 attending on a daily basis. He said the abuse appeared to have been going on for a long time. According to Kumar, a previous whistleblower had alerted the centre’s supervisor in the past, but no action was taken — and that person was subsequently fired.
Kumar added that authorities had long suspected abuse at the facility but had been unable to prove it until now.
Videos show children locked in bathrooms, placed inside washing machines
The case came to light after a complainant shared disturbing videos this week showing children as young as two years old being placed inside a washing machine while water was sprayed on them. Other videos showed children being locked inside bathrooms.
Kumar said the videos prompted a complaint to the children’s helpline. “The people who are supposed to take care of the children… they abuse them because the children cry or make some sound. To stop them crying, they take the child and put him/her inside washing machines and lock them in the bathroom…this is the complaint we got,” he said.
He said officials contacted the complainant, obtained the videos, and immediately approached the police to file a complaint.
Police case filed, matter referred to child rights commission
A police case has been registered against five caregivers, and the videos have been submitted to the Karnataka State Commission for Protection of Child Rights as part of the investigation.
Capgemini responds, shuts facility as precaution
In a statement, Capgemini said the health, safety and well-being of its employees and their families remained its “foremost priority.” The company said it was cooperating fully with the investigation and had temporarily closed the daycare facility as a precautionary measure.
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