The Arunachal Pradesh Women’s Welfare Society (APWWS) on September 5 demanded the state government to establish a high-level independent committee to investigate instances of “repeated child sexual abuse” in schools and propose remedial measures for all schools, whether they are government or privately run.
The state’s top women’s body also suggested that the education department should promote awareness of the POCSO Act in every school in the state.
The APWWS’s call for the probe came barely a couple of days after Lower Subansiri district police arrested two teachers, including the principal of a Ziro-based private school, in connection with molestation of a girl student.
Lower Subansiri SP Keni Bagra said that 50-year-old teacher, Kriti Sundar Barman, of a private school was arrested for allegedly molesting a minor girl student, and the school principal Anup Shekhar Jha (55) for not paying any heed to the complaint lodged by the victim’s father.
He said that on receipt of a written FIR, a case under various sections of IPC and POCSO Act has been registered at Ziro Women Police Station. The WPS, under the supervision of SP, arrested the alleged accused and further investigation is underway, he added.
The APWWS in a statement said that it is “deeply concerned” about the repeated instances of child sexual abuse in Arunachal schools.
“The incidents of sexual assaults reported from these schools are a matter of grave concern. Everyone in a position of authority should seriously reflect on what has gone wrong to reach a state where there are instances of rape and sexual abuse of children almost every month,” it said.
“We strongly condemn the latest incident which is reported from Arunachal Public School, Ziro and urge our legislators to discuss this issue in the current assembly session,” the APWWS said.
It also said that the Ziro branch of APWWS visited the police station on September 4 to receive an update on the case, and added: “We are closely monitoring the situation”.
