Kerala: Child Rights Commision registers case in girl's death

Kerala Child Rights Commission registered a case in connection with the death of a 14-year-old girl who was raped by her foster father. Relatives and locals staged a protest in front of Kakkanad CWC office.

Ernakulam: The State Child Rights Commission has registered a case in the death of a 14-year-old girl, who was under the care of the Child Welfare Committee (CWC). The Commission sought reports from District Collector, District Police Chief and District Child Protection Officer.

The autistic teenage girl had been molested by her foster father, later lost her life while she was staying at Kakkanad Children's Home. Relatives of the girl child and locals held a protest in front of Kakkanad CWC office with the girl's body and they ended the protest only after police gave assurance for probe in the case. Meanwhile, police informed that the preliminary reports suggest that the cause of death was pneumonia.

Kerala police have revealed that the former Ernakulam Child Welfare Committee (CWC) had failed to follow due diligence while handing over a girl child on foster care to a family. The 14-year-old girl was allegedly raped and impregnated by her stepfather.

Kerala Minister for Social Justice KK Shailaja has now directed the Child Development Department director to conduct an investigation regarding the alleged lapses on the side of CWC and to submit a report. Minister said stringent action would be taken against the CWC members if found guilty in the investigation. Minister has also directed to provide full care and treatment to the victim child.

Police arrested foster father C G Sasikumar, a native of Koothuparamaba, last Saturday. His wife was also arrested for colluding with her husband in the crime and helping him to cover up the abuse.

Police said that the CWC failed in checking the background of the foster. The accused had provided wrong information while adopting the child and had covered up the fact that he had married twice before and had children in those relationships.

The victim was adopted by the accused in 2016 from a Child Protection Centre at Kakkanad, where she was admitted after losing both her parents. The victim's sister opened up about the sexual abuse during a counselling session. The sister had told her counsellors that Sasikumar tried to abuse her also when she visited them during vacation.

Child Welfare Committee came to know about the abuse, impregnation and subsequent abortion of the victim by Sasikumar which happened in 2017 only this January when her sister deposed about it during counselling. The revelation of the child was also corroborated in the subsequent police investigation. A medical examination of the victim has also confirmed rape and abortion.

The short-term temporary foster care programme was launched by the government to find a home for orphan children for a short duration so that they also enjoy a family atmosphere.

However, the government had given stringent directions to thoroughly investigate and study the background of the foster family. The district child protection officer is the one entrusted with such investigation and police said no such investigation was carried out while handing over the child for foster care.