Exasperated over the negligence by the Kolshewadi police in notifying the case of the three-year-old who was raped by her father, the state Child Welfare Committee (CWC) has served an ultimatum to the police.
Exasperated over the negligence by the Kolshewadi police in notifying the case of the three-year-old who was raped by her father, the state Child Welfare Committee (CWC) has served an ultimatum to the police.
The child was found at Kalyan railway station and taken to Sion hospital on November 24, where she is being treated for serious abdominal injuries. Ten days later, the police have not produced the girl before the CWC, making it difficult for channelise the help that has been offered for her care.
“We understand that the girl is under treatment and cannot be produced before us, but the police could have at least informed us officially,” said Sumitra Ashtekar, a member of the CWC in Thane, which is empowered to coordinate the care of such children under the Juvenile Justice (Care and Protection of Children) Act 2000. “They have not done this in spite of our reminders.”
“The result of this lethargy is that we cannot help the child, though an NGO wants to pay the costs for the treatment and is willing to provide a caretaker at the hospital.”
This neglect by the Kolshewadi police is strange, for it was in October that they were given a special instruction on the juvenile justice law and the processes to be undertaken with respect to the CWC.
But inspector BG Roham said, “The girl is in trauma and is under treatment, so she cannot be produced physically. As far as informing the CWC on paper, we can do it on Friday when the CWC has its sittings.”
Ravindra Deshmukh, who is investigating the case, said, “We thought that we are taking good care of the girl and she may not need additional assistance. I met the child just a day ago and she is still not in a condition to give a statement. There are emotional and technical complications.”
The CWC has been more concerned as it says that the girl has been left in the care of hospital staff, when she requires special attention. “We had nominated Sharad Barse from Aasra Childline in Kalyan to coordinate between the police and CWC but we got no cooperation. We even tried sending a representative to the hospital, but were not allowed inside,” Ashtekar said.
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