Muzaffarpur shelter home case: Delhi court defers judgment till 14 January with judge who conducted trial on leave

New Delhi: A Delhi court on Thursday deferred by a month the judgment in the case of alleged sexual and physical assault of several girls at a shelter home in Bihar’s Muzaffarpur which was run by former Bihar People’s Party (BPP) MLA Brajesh Thakur. Additional Sessions Judge Sudesh Kumar deferred the verdict till 14 January as Judge Saurabh Kulshrestha, who had conducted the trial, was on leave on Thursday. The court had earlier deferred the order by a month till 12 December as 20 accused, who are currently lodged in Tihar central jail, could not be brought to court premises due to lawyers' strike in all six district courts in the National Capital at the time. The court had on 20 March 2018, framed charges against the accused, including Thakur, for offences of criminal conspiracy to commit rape and penetrative sexual assault against minors. The matter had come to light after the Tata Institute of Social Sciences (TISS) submitted a report to the Bihar government on 26 May 2018, highlighting the alleged sexual abuse of minor girls in the shelter home.