New Delhi: The second episode of 'Satyamev Jayate' was based on the issue of child sexual abuse in India. The makers had invited some eminent guests on the show. One of them was Nishit Kumar who works for Childline in Mumbai. Kumar quoted the Anchorage case while describing the current situation of child sexual abuse in India.
Surprisingly, India still doesn't have any strong law against child sexual abuse. The Supreme Court upheld the appeal by Childline India Foundation and the Maharashtra Government against the Mumbai High Court judgement in the Anchorage case. Two British citizen Alan Walters and Duncan Grant were involved in the case. The Sessions court in Mumbai found them guilty but the convicts pleaded in the Mumbai High Court which upheld their appeal. Later, Childline questioned the decision in the Supreme Court sent the two British citizens back to jail.
The case goes back to the year 2001, when the Childline helpline received reports of abuse of boys at the Anchorage Shelters. The High Court appointed Maharashtra State Monitoring Committee on Juvenile Justice also got similar reports. The case was investigated and brought to the notice of the local Police, but the High Court had to intervene to get the case filed.
Two British nationals Duncan Grant and Alan Waters were running the shelters which housed street children of the age group 8-18 years. The investigation revealed Walters and Grant's involvement in the child abuse cases. The children were also taken to Goa for the same. Later, Walters and Grant absconded from India, but the Indian Government persuaded them to return to India to face the trial.
However, this whole process raises some very important questions about the
yardsticks in the hearing of cases related to the domain of child abuse. The victims can't be treated as educated adults in these cases as they need more support and courage to speak about the plight they have undergone.
Further the vulnerability of street children is more than the children living within the comfort of their homes. Social and economic conditions are also needed to be considered in such situations. It's an alarming thing if the state still doesn’t have one comprehensive law against the problem of child sexual abuse.
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