CHENNAI: Four Class 8 boys were booked under the POCSO Act after they engaged in consensual sexual activity with a female classmate at the girl’s house in Chennai, police said. The incident, which took place a month ago, was brought to Child Welfare Committee’s attention on Tuesday by an NGO working with corporation schools.
“There was no penetrative sexual assault. The children were attempting to experiment with a sexual act, influenced by some content,” said an investigation officer. The girl’s sister saw them and told their parents.
An officer said the act was consensual and the children are aged 13-14. The boys were booked under Sections of the POCSO Act, including for touching a child with sexual intent, and sent to a juvenile correctional facility. The girl was sent to a government home for counselling.
CWC (North) member N Lalitha said the girl’s parents told the school about the incident. “The school spoke to the children and let them off as the headmistress claimed government schools were unofficially instructed not to report sexual abuse,” Lalitha said, adding Section 21 of POCSO mandates reporting of sexual offenses against children.
“Multiple court judgments have understood the Act’s intent as not being to criminalise consensual adolescent sexual activity,” said Vidya Reddy of Tulir - Centre for Prevention and Healing of Child Sexual Abuse, noting there is a poor understanding of adolescent psychosexual development. “We live in a sexualised world but this is not explained to children. They rely on pornography and peer-boasting for information. In cases of consensual sexual exploration, the children should be spoken to about what is age-appropriate sexual behaviour,” she said.
“What I find painful is that, in such cases when all involved are minors, the boys are almost always treated as perpetrators. Are the parents of the boys made aware they too can file cases under POCSO?” she said.