Parents' friends turn abusive: Childline
Since these relationships are clandestine, incidents are often hushed up'
KOZHIKODE: There is a new category of abusers against kids, say Childline officials in Kozhikode, after they reported five cases in recent months where either the lover of the mother or male friend of the father was the culprit. The officials here also raised concerns that since these relationships are usually clandestine, the incidents were also often hushed up.
“The friends of either the father or mother turned out to be abusive towards the children, especially when they got a chance to mingle with the kids at home. However, there could be several more cases than was reported, as the families tended not to reveal them to the outside world, and the children were left to suffer alone,” says Kozhikode district coordinator M.P. Muhammedali.
From April to August, two cases were reported where male friends of fathers were the villains, however, in three cases, the lovers of mothers were the villains, according to Childline reports. The officials say that these cases are an example of bad parenting that negatively affects the children. Earlier, Childline had reported that the incidents of sexual abuse on children by friends and family members were on the rise, because the parents trusted the immediate relatives or their friends.