Little girl abused by grandpa, mother fights against father

November 19, 2012

little_girl_abused

Bangalore, November 19: Once a playful child, seven-year-old Shrija is now quiet. She talks only to her mother Smitha, 32, and counsellors. The child was five when her maternal grandfather sexually abused her for over a year when her mother used to go to work.

Life has never been the same for Smitha, a teacher, ever since she found out the truth. Kinship for her is now fraught with minefields. For, she is waging a war against her parents and siblings to protect the life and rights of her daughter.

"I am a single mother and had been staying with my parents for over three years. Shrija was a very talkative and playful child but she suddenly stopped talking or interacting with anyone about six-seven months back. She just wanted to move out of my parents' house. I asked her the reason but she did not open up. One day, I slowly gained her confidence, and she broke down. She told me that 'grandpa is touching me down' (private parts)," Smitha says.

But a bigger shock was in store for Smitha when she found out that her mother knew about her father's crime but kept quiet. Her elder brother and sister refused to stand by her, saying it will tarnish the family's reputation.

"I had no option but to go to the police against my father and family. I reached the police station around 2pm that day but my FIR was registered only at 10pm. The officials 'tried to convince' me that I must not bring out my family matter in public and sort out the issue at home. But I stood by my daughter and lodged the FIR," she says.

Her family went absconding and there has been no progress in the case for over four months now. "Had I not been supported by volunteers and counsellors of Enfold Trust, I would not have been able to fight this battle. Shrija is slowly coming to terms with the outrage and is now going out to play with friends. But she has become far too mature for her age," she says.

(Names have been changed to protect identity)

QUOTE

I just want to tell all parents that they must fight for their children's rights and educate them about such sexual and physical abuse."

Smitha |mother

Child abusers thrive on

stigma haunting victims

A group of women are fighting to spread awareness against child sexual abuse

Hetal Vyas


Bangalore: Molestation or sexual abuse of children does not even find a mention as a category of crime in the records maintained by the National Crime Records Bureau (NCRB).


In 2011, Karnataka reported only 334 cases of crime against children. In India, 33,098 cases of crime against children were registered last year of which 21.5% were rape of minor girls and about 70% were of abduction and ransom, according to NCRB data.


The biggest hurdle to fighting child sexual abuse in India is the social stigma of reporting the case. "The mother will have to face repercussions for reporting. Also, there are no good laws, policies, training in government-run departments. A minor undergoes enormous trauma if she/he comes into the open against the abuse," activist Gitanjali Gupta said.


Gitanjali and Ritu Reaves, who moved to Bangalore from the US, are working with Dr Shaibya Saldanha, founder, Enfold Trust, to promote awareness on child sexual abuse. They are deploying their networking skills and using social media to spread the word.


But there is hope as the law is being provided with some teeth to protect child victims. Said Dr Saldanha: "The Protection of Children From Sexual Offences Bill 2011 is a big step towards fighting cases of child sexual abuse. The biggest advantage of this bill is that the accused will have to prove his/her innocence and the victim will not have to prove her/his allegation."


The bill also makes it mandatory for a person dealing with such cases like a doctor, parent or counsellor to report it to the police.



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News Network
June 5,2020

Jun 5: A young woman was forced to drink liquor allegedly by her husband after which he along with four friends assaulted, burnt her with cigarette butts and raped her in front of her five year-old son, police said on Friday.

All the five, who were taken into custody earlier, have been arrested. The shocking incident occurred in the state capital last night.

The incident came to light after the 25-year-old woman, approached police and complained against her husband and his four friends.

A case has been registered against the five accused for kidnapping, assaulting and gangrape.

Since the incident took place in front of the child, a case under Protection of children from sexual offices Act has also been charged against the accused.

Meanwhile, State health and family welfare minister K K Shailaja asked the state police chief to take stringentction against the culprits as "such cruelty happened in front of her child."

The Kerala State Women's Commission on its own registered a case and sought report from the Thiruvananthapuram Rural SP.

She managed to escape from there and pleaded for help from a young man, who saw in heran inebriatedstate, and took her to her house and informed police.

The man later told some television channels that she was crying, had injuries on her face and pleaded for help.

Police have recorded the statement of the woman, who was admitted to a government hospital here and later discharged.

She had also stated that the men had tortured her using cigarette butts.

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News Network
May 9,2020

Shillong, May 9: The poisonous mushrooms that killed six people at a remote village in Meghalaya's West Jaintia Hills district have been identified as Amanita phalloides, commonly known as the 'Death Cap', a senior official said on Saturday.

Six people, including a 14-year-old girl, of Lamin village along the India-Bangladesh border in Amlarem civil sub-division died after consuming wild mushrooms they collected from a nearby forest late last month.

The wild mushroom has been identified as Amanita phalloides and is hepatotoxic as it directly affects the liver, state Director of Health Services (MI) Dr Aman War told PTI.

He said it has been established after an investigation that the cause of the deaths was the poisonous mushrooms.

At least 18 persons from three families were taken ill after consuming the mushrooms.

The symptoms after consuming the poisonous fungus include vomiting, headache and unconsciousness, the senior doctor said.

Most of those taken ill, including a pregnant woman, have already recovered and gone home. Therefore, people can survive as it depends on the amount of poison that you have consumed. Only one person was unaffected, maybe he did not consume much, he said.

Three people are still undergoing treatment and are recovering. Two of them are at the North Eastern Indira Gandhi Regional Institute of Health and Medical Sciences (NEIGRIHMS) and one in Woodland Hospital, Dr War said.

He said the health department can only appeal to the people, especially those in the rural areas, to refrain from eating wild mushrooms, while the horticulture department should take measures to create awareness.

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News Network
March 18,2020

Jaipur, Mar 18: Initially buried as per Islamic traditions, an unidentified man's body was exhumed and later cremated after he was found to be a Hindu in Rajasthan's Tonk district, police said.

The family members identified the body of Mahaveer Sahu on Tuesday, a day after the burial, as they stumbled upon photos of the deceased that had circulated on social media.

The man was brought to a government hospital by locals in an unconscious state on March 12 and he died on March 13, according to Purani Tonk police station SHO Shivlal.

The man was said to be a liquor addict and was found unconscious on the road, he added.

The body was kept at the mortuary for three days awaiting identification. Despite efforts to trace the next of kin, the identity could not be ascertained and members of Hindu and Muslim communities were brought in to take a decision, Shivlal said.

The community leaders presumed that he was a Muslim after examining the body and the burial took place as per Islamic funeral traditions on Monday, he added.

Meanwhile, Sahu's family members saw the photo of his body that had circulated on a WhatsAapp group and identified him later that day. They rushed to the hospital and then to the police station in the night where they were informed that the body had been buried.

“The body was exhumed with permission from the sub-divisional magistrate on Tuesday and handed over to the family members after proper identification. Members of the Muslim community led by an Imam were also present and gave in writing that they have no objection,” Shivlal said.

The body was later cremated by his family members.

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