CHENNAI: A 13-year-old girl recently complained on the Childline helpline, saying the Thirumangalam all-women police have not arrested her step-father for sexually assaulting her even three months after an FIR was registered against him. On Tuesday, a 20-minute audio clip of the conversation went viral, in which the victim, who studies at a private school in Chennai, can be heard explaining in detail how the police booked her step-father in August but haven’t arrested him.
A senior police officer said the suspect is still at large. The victim’s father died of tuberculosis in 2013, and in 2019, her mother married the suspect, though the marriage hasn’t been registered yet. The suspect has allegedly been abusing the victim since August 2020 and threatened to leave the family if she spoke about the abuse.
A few months ago, the victim’s mother heard that her second husband had been living with another woman after he stopped visiting them since March. Around that time, the victim told her mother about the abuse she suffered. Based on her complaint, police officials registered a case under the POCSO Act in August.
The victim’s mother submitted a petition at the city police commissionerate in September saying she was made to sweep the station for a few days since she did not have Rs 5,000 to bribe the inspector. Later, the victim called the child helpline after hearing about the Coimbatore sexual harassment case on TV. A police official said that the accused will be arrested soon.