Cops to conduct campaigns at schools

THIRUVANANTHAPURAM: The recent case where a woman in Kadakkavoor was arrested under the Protection of Children from Sexual Offences Act (Pocso Act) for allegedly sexually exploiting her 14-year-old son shocked the entire state. According to the statistics provided by the police, 321 Pocso cases were registered in the district in 2020. Though this is less compared to 464 registered in 2019, it is quite alarming as children were mostly at home owing to the lockdown.  

As many as 101 cases were reported in the Thiruvananthapuram city limits and 220 in rural limits. “The sexual assault against children has always been a worrying issue. The number of cases has risen as people are reporting more cases now. As counselling sessions are more happening nowadays, many children are sensitive about these issues and they report to the police as soon as something bad happens,” said DCP Divya Gopinath. 

According to her, in 99 per cent of the Pocso cases, the accused will be a known figure to the victim and this leads to delayed reporting in many of the cases. “The evidence collection gets difficult if the victim is abused by his/her father, uncle, or any other family members. A child would react immediately if a stranger misbehaves. But they are traumatised when it is a family member, neighbour, family friend, or someone they know for a long time.

The alarming fact is that many of the children undergo abuse over a longer period. They are afraid of the repercussions that follow,” she adds. “Many cases are being registered under IPC Section 377 (unnatural offenses). Mostly boys are being victims of this as they are sexually assaulted by their maids or family members. So awareness should be given to both boys and girls at the same time,” said Divya Gopinath.