A bruised hand, a torn shirt and a quiet protest outside the police station with placards that read “Please don’t look at us differently”.
What started off being a peaceful protest against the alleged sexual assault of a three-year-old student in a private school in Indiranagar ended violently, leaving a few protestors and police personnel injured. The Indiranagar police detained a woman protestor from the north east for creating ruckus and manhandling the police.
“It all started when the police asked us to disperse as we had not taken permission to protest. They said we had to shift to hide the identity of the victim as per the POCSO Act guidelines. As we were leaving, some cops pushed us. This irked some of them who fought back,” said a member of the Thadou Students’ Association later.
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Linda, another protestor, said, “They were forcing us to go even when we were standing near the Namma Metro station. We were only four girls then and the clothes of the girl who has been detained was pulled apart.”
What shocked them further was the public joining in. “An autorickshaw driver who was standing on the road started chasing us. Another man hit a boy on his back. He was also hit by the police. A shopkeeper too joined in. Would the public have done such a thing had we not been from the north east?” asked Mercy.
They then went towards the Indiranagar Police Station, outside which they held a peaceful demonstration. The sudden violence, lasting for about 20 minutes on Tuesday morning, resulted in a traffic jam on the busy C.M.H. Road for a while.
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Parents shaken by the episode
Shaken by the alleged sexual assault on a three-year-old nursery student in a private school in Indiranagar, parents of at least six children belonging to the victim’s community said they were contemplating moving their children out of the school.
“It is the manner in which the case is being handled by the school that scares me. They are showing no support towards the victim,” said the mother of a classmate of the victim.
The victim’s mother said the child, who was always eager to go to school, was already showing unwillingness to return.
The school authorities said they would not come in the way of the decision of the parents, as long as it was approved by the Education Department.
CWC members visit
Child Welfare Committee (CWC) members, along with the Department of Women and Child Development officials, visited the victim and her mother and plan to take the child for counselling at National Institute of Mental Health and Neurosciences (NIMHANS) after she recovers from the shock.
Meanwhile, Block Education Officer Ramesh V. said he had submitted an interim report stating the school management had showed him CCTV footage of the child throughout the day. “The school management claims that the incident did not happen on their premises, but the police have arrested one person. We will have to wait for the investigations to continue before deciding what action to initiate,” he said.
Kripa Alva, Chairperson of Karnataka Commission for Protection of Child Rights said that the commission has registered a suo moto complaint on the issue.