The Kerala State Minority Commission on Saturday denied any element of trafficking in the two incidents in which 589 children from West Bengal, Jharkhand, and Bihar were detained at the Palakkad railway junction station last week.
The commission said poor children from the minority communities outside the State were brought to Kerala in an attempt to provide better education and nutritious food to them.
‘Unnecessary hurry’It criticised Railway Police officials and district authorities for showing unnecessary hurry in detaining the children and arresting those who accompanied them.
Interacting with the media after visiting the two centres in the district where some of the children have been temporarily accommodated, commission chairman M. Veerankutty and member P. Kulsu said there were violations of minority rights as orphanages that saved children from poverty and neglect had been subjected to public ridicule.
“The commission feels there is no question of child trafficking. Poor children were sent by their illiterate parents to orphanages in Kozhikode and Malappuram to save them from poverty and give better education,” said Mr. Veerankutty.
He said the commission would submit a report to Chief Minister Oommen Chandy, Home Minister Ramesh Chennithala, and Social Welfare Minister M.K. Muneer.
It is learnt that the Crime Branch may taken over the investigation in the case from the Railway Police. An order in this regard will be issued soon, sources here said.
A team of officials from Jharkhand reached Nedumbassery on Saturday evening as invited by the Kerala State Commission for Protection of Child Rights. They will visit Palakkad on Sunday to discuss the issue of children from the State detained here.
Motivated move: IUMLThe Indian Union Muslim League (IUML) has criticised the action taken against those who brought orphans and destitute children to Kerala.
In a statement here, IUML State general secretary K.P.A. Majeed said: “Attempts to describe it as trafficking of children should be viewed as highly motivated with ulterior intentions.”
The IUML said that hundreds of orphanages functioning in the country, particularly in Kerala, had exemplary track record. All of them, he said, were doing yeomen service to protect the destitute children.
