Hyderabad: Child sexual abuse within families remains a serious concern despite stringent punishments under the Protection of Children from Sexual Offences (Pocso) Act.
According to legal and mental health experts, such crimes often go undetected for long periods, leaving children traumatised for a lifetime.
"Half of the Pocso cases involve family members, mainly fathers or uncles," additional public prosecutor Ram Reddy told Deccan Chronicle.
He said that such instances are more against those with underprivileged backgrounds.
“While dealing with such cases, a major challenge is the reluctance of mothers (who normally are the complainants) to fully cooperate in the prosecution of the offender, particularly when the perpetrator is the family's breadwinner,” Ram Reddy pointed out.
“Fear and economic dependence often lead them to seek bail for the accused regardless of the initial complaint,” he said.
In one instance, a case was filed against a man for alleged sexual assault of his minor daughter. The girl's mother filed a complaint alleging that he had sexually abused their daughter on several occasions.
However, the victim and her sister did not cooperate during the prosecution. Since the prosecution could not establish the victim's age at the time of the offence, the accused was acquitted for want of evidence.
Similarly, a case against a man for sexually assaulting his 14-year-old step-daughter also resulted in acquittal. Though the mother initially filed a complaint, she, the victim, and her brother did not cooperate during the trial, leading to his acquittal.
A lawyer explained that the fear of threat often silences victims.
"There's a high chance of the victim receiving death threats. Even during trial, the victim is scared to open up," the lawyer said.
Meanwhile, Dr. Manchala Hrishikesh Giri Prasad, associate professor, department of child psychiatry, Niloufer Hospital, while speaking about the long-term psychological impact of such sexual abuse, said, "If the victim is a girl, she goes through internalisation disorder where she suffers from anxiety and depression for a longer period of time and will eventually lose interest in marriage on growing up."
"If the victim is a boy, he suffers from externalisation disorder and goes through problematic behaviour related to poor impulse-control, including rule breaking and aggression.”
Dr. Prasad added that perpetrators in such cases are either illiterates or have a criminal history.
“I came across a few students who were sexually abused by their brothers, cousins and uncles when they were minors. They did not report to the police. There are many such victims who don't file complaints fearing death threats or losing their dignity,” said Padma, a student counsellor.
Many experts stressed the need to create awareness among children about appropriate physical contact and for parents to observe behavioural changes in their children.
