Pastor Anthony Thomas has been arrested and booked under Protection of Children from Sexual Offences (POCSO) Act. He has also been charged with rape under section 376 of Ranbir Penal Code (RPC).
A 57-year-old pastor from Kerala was arrested in Jammu and Kashmir on Saturday on charges of sexual exploitation of the children in his care. Jammu and Kashmir government raided an orphanage in Kathua district and rescued 19 children, including eight girls.
"We acted on complaints of sexual exploitation," says Rohit Khajuria, district development commissioner of Kathua. "The raid went through the night. We rescued all the children that were there at the time, examined them medically and shifted them to children's homes."
Pastor Anthony Thomas has been arrested and booked under Protection of Children from Sexual Offences (POCSO) Act. He has also been charged with rape under section 376 of Ranbir Penal Code (RPC).
Thomas ran the orphanage, which the police say is more of a hostel. He denied all allegations of sexual exploitation. Police say he ran the 'shelter' in a clandestine manner and the children, aged 5 to 15 years, were lodged in four to five rooms adjacent to a religious place.
"It was not an orphanage but a hostel," says Khajuria. "Most of the rooms were located in the basement. All the children are from an economically weak background; otherwise, who else would send their daughter and son to such a place."
A source from the team that conducted the raid said the children complained to women officials in private that they were forced to watch porn.
Senior Superintendent of Police Shridhar Patil said the hostel was not registered with the district administration. "Thomas had no registration to run the hostel. The children studied at the local government school nearby, and lived here," he said.
"I live here with my wife," said the pastor in defence, adding, "She went to Kerala after the floods there. There is no truth in the allegations."
Vishwa Hindu Parishad (VHP) said a human trafficking racket was being carried out in the name of the charity. He added that such anti-social elements received huge funds from abroad for such criminal activities and conversion.
"Hindu society should be vigilant against such nefarious elements who exploit the weaker sections of society and use them for conversion and human trafficking. If the administration fails to take effective steps to check these activities, people may be forced to take matters in their own hands," said Leela Karan Sharma, state VHP president.
All J&K Christian Forum rubbished the allegations of conversion and exploitation. "Show us where the conversion is. This is just drama; they are always harassing us," said Marks Gill, president of the Forum.
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Thomas ran the orphanage, which the police say is more of a hostel. He denied all allegations of sexual exploitation. Police say he ran the 'shelter' in a clandestine manner and the children, aged 5 to 15 years, were lodged in four to five rooms adjacent to a religious place.
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