The Kerala State Commission for Protection of Child Rights has written to the West Bengal Home Secretary and the West Bengal Commission for Protection of Child Rights seeking steps to ensure in trial court the presence of a 10-year-old girl who fled from that State following sexual abuse.
Commission chairperson Manoj Kumar K.V. wrote in the communication to B.P. Gopalika, Home Secretary, West Bengal, that the girl was sexually abused by her uncle and his friends. She, along with her mother, had to flee from the State in the wake of threats as a result of filing a complaint of sexual abuse under the provisions of the Protection of Children from Sexual Offences (POCSO) Act. They are currently in Kozhikode, unable to return home.
It is important to ensure the presence of the child for trial in the case. The commission is ready to repatriate the survivor and her mother to West Bengal for trial, but the authorities should make arrangements to ensure protection and proper shelter for the family, wrote Mr. Manoj Kumar.
The commission, in a statement issued here, said the child and her mother should be given necessary protection till the time they remained in Kerala. It also sought reports on the steps taken in this regard by the Kozhikode District Collector, District Child Protection Officer, and the District Child Welfare Committee. The commission will take necessary steps in the best interests of the survivor, the statement said.
