CHENNAI: Mustering courage after 13 years, a woman filed a complaint of rape, torture and abetment against her mother, relatives and two women who were in-charges of a private child care home where she had stayed. Police arrested three out of the 12 people named in the FIR. Isabel Richardson, one of those arrested, had come out on bail recently after being jailed in a similar case in 2021.
The victim, now 21 years old, in her complaint on Thursday to Child Welfare Committee (CWC) member N Lalitha, said her father died in 2009 when she was a minor and she began living with her uncle Desappan and aunt Revathy. While Desappan raped her, Revathy allegedly tortured her by spraying chilli powder on her private area, whenever she complained.
“When the victim complained to her mother, she had told the victim that it was all normal and it was her responsibility to go through it,” Lalitha who assisted in filing a police complaint, told TNIE. While studying Class 8, the victim left the house and joined a child’s home. However, the victim’s mother, with the help of police personnel, brought the child back to her home. She was allegedly beaten and raped by Desappan’s friends Siva, Srinivasan and Ramesh. After the victim got pregnant, her mother had helped in aborting the child.
A few years ago, the victim sought help from women police personnel who enrolled her in the Madras Christian Council of Social Service (MCCSS). But her woes didn’t end there. Two workers at the home, Prasanna and Alex raped her with the help of fellow workers Fathima and Suganthi, the FIR says. Former secretary of MCCSS Josephine and present secretary Isabel Richardson allegedly concealed the information, said the police. Based on the victim’s complaint, an All-Women Police station registered a case under POCSO Act, JJ Act and IPC. Police have also arrested the victim’s mother and aunt.
False case: 5 try to kill themselves
Chennai: Five pople, including two women attempted to kill themselves in front of the Police Commissioner’s office on Thursday alleging a Sub-Inspector tried to book them in false cases. They were pavement dwellers, said police sources. A senior police officer said an SI from the Egmore police station allegedly tried to book them in theft cases pending at the station.
Thief dies after jumping into well
Chennai: A 29-year-old man who allegedly attempted to steal a motorbike jumped into a dilapidated well and died as he was chased by villagers on Thursday. The deceased, Shankar Ganesh from Dindigul district, attempted to steal a motorbike parked in front of a house in Karayanchavadi on Thursday. The body was recovered and sent for postmortem examination.