Sexual abuse against girls on the rise, says NGO

Speaking to DT Next, A Kathir, Executive Director, Evidence, said, “Out of the total rape cases, 60 to 65 percentage are against girls and out of them in only seven percentage of the case, the accused are convicted and in a majority of the cases, the accused are allowed to go scot free. Police have failed miserably in conducting investigation properly in such cases.”

Recently, an 18-year-old Dalit girl in Vinayagapuram village in Villupuram district was raped by a gang of five members when she was returning from her work. Kathir carried out field study in the village where the incident happened and said that before the victim was sexually abused she was physically harassed.

What was more tragic was that among the five accused, one was her lover and he had planned the incident along with his friends. “Sexual abuse against girls in Villupuram district had increased in the recent days as a 15-year-old girl was sexually molested by a gang of three members in the district,” said Kathir.

He also demanded the government to book the accused under Goondas Act and to give Rs 10 lakh to the victim. The accused should also be not given bail till the completion of the case, demanded Kathir.