In a major intervention, Childline officials in Malappuram district in Kerala rescued a 13-year-old girl, studying in class 8, from her house where she was allegedly being subjected to sexual abuse. The child, who was being sexually abused by two of her mother's friends, was rescued by the Childline officials and shifted to a care home in Manjeri on Monday.
The child who hails from Manjeri in Malappuram, was showing reluctance to go back home from school for the past few days. According to the Childline officials, information about the child being subjected to sexual abuse came out through her teachers. “Teachers had been noticing her aversion to go back home after school. The child then told the issue about sexual abuse to her teachers when they enquired if she had any problems at home,” Anwar Karakkadan, coordinator of Childline told TNM. It was very disheartening to find out that the child was being assaulted with the knowledge of her mother, added Anwar.
As per directions of the Childline officials, Manjeri police arrested two persons, Muhammed (47) and Abdul Azees (55) on February 15, for sexually assaulting the girl.
“Section 7 and 8 of the Protection of Children from Sexual Offences (POCSO) Act have been charged against the accused. The duo is now in prison in Malappuram,” NB Shaiju, Circle Inspector of Manjeri police station told TNM.
As per the information given by Childline officials and police, one of the accused lives close to the victim’s house. “When we enquired the issues with close relatives of the victim including her siblings, information which the child gave was mostly found to be true. It was as per their request that we shifted the victim to a care home in Manjeri,” said Anwar.
Meanwhile, according to police officials, the child did not give any statement regarding her mother's involvement in the sexual abuse. “But it was found that the duo frequently visited the victim’s house and had close contact with the family,” said CI Shaiju.
The victim’s father is working abroad for the past few years, while the child was living with her two siblings and mother at home. The Childline officials have scheduled a Child Welfare Committee (CWC) sitting on Thursday to decide further proceedings in the matter.