In a welcome move, the Kerala High Court has directed the state government and CBSE to include a prevention-oriented programme on sexual abuse as a mandatory part of the school curriculum.
Issued on Friday, the order was a result of the court taking suo motu cognizance of the rising number of Pocso cases and underage pregnancies in Kerala during a bail hearing.
"While considering an application for regular bail in a crime alleging rape of a minor, this court expressed its anguish at the alarming rise in the number of sexual offences committed on school children.... In many instances, the perpetrators themselves were students — either minors or those who had just crossed the threshold age of majority," Justice Bechu Kurian Thomas observed.
He directed the state government and CBSE to form a committee of experts within two months and submit a report of their findings within six months. Notably, the court advised the government to take guidelines from America's Erin's Law, drafted by Erin Merryn, who is a sexual abuse survivor.
The high court order traces back to June 8, when Justice Thomas was hearing a bail application in a case involving a 15-year-old girl, who was pregnant. She claimed to be in "a relationship" with a 23-year-old man.
Her parents came to know about the "relationship" after she became pregnant. And she refused to abort the fetus, arguing that she planned to get married to the man.
"However, the fact remains that the girl is the victim of a sexual crime, and the young boy is an alleged sexual offender," the court noted. "Unmindful of the consequences, they indulged in a sexual act which can result in a minimum imprisonment of 20 years for the accused."
Justice Thomas concluded that the case indicated the lack of awareness of the Pocso Act and other legalities.
Worrying picture
As per police data, 2,175 Pocso cases have been filed till August 1, 2022. In 2021, the total number of cases was 3,559. In Thiruvananthapuram city alone, 86 cases have been filed; in rural, it stood at 203. In Ernakulam city, 84 cases were registered; rural saw 113.
'Even girl can be offender'
Parvathy Menon, who appeared in the court on behalf of KELSA, says even if both the parties are minors, according to Pocso, the accused (boy or girl, based on the complaint) will be viewed as an "offender".
"However, children are not aware of this," she adds. "This is why they should know about the legalities. Not just about the restrictions but their rights, too."
Parvathy believes the 15-year-old girl mentioned above would mostly end up in a government home for abused children. "If her family does not support her, she will become the government's ward. With this one incident, her entire life can change," she notes.
Regarding the court order on enhancing awareness among children, Parvathy says the ball is in the government's court. "It has to proactively make a prevention-oriented programme on sexual abuse part of the curriculum," she adds. "There is no room for any excuse, citing disagreements from sections of society."
Notably, the court accepted the submissions of KELSA, and pointed out that the teachers also needed to be educated on the subject. Besides Kelsa, a Kochi-based NGO Dil Se and 21-year-old law student Parvathy Nambiar were also allowed as respondents in the case.
'Shocking revelations'
Dil Se has a comprehensive history of providing scientific sexual awareness classes across the state. "We primarily focus on Pocso-related matters," says Dil Se trustee and lawyer Rashmi K V.
"We filed the submission partly because we have been trying to impart awareness among adults too for many years. We educate teachers, Anganwadi workers, etc, through workshops."
Rashmi says she has seen pregnant sex abuse victims as young as the age of 11. "In Attapadi, for instance, I came across shocking revelations of child abuse. The kids didn't even know what was being done to them," she adds. "I submitted five such cases in court. We will be happy to provide any kind of service the government might need."
The Pocso Act, she adds, mandates spreading awareness as part of its implementation. However, so far, the government has not acted on that part. "No instructions were given to schools," she Rashmi notes.
Dil Se co-founder Cristelle Hart Singh says the NGO has been working on the prevention of child sexual abuse since 2012. "We took it up as a mission after seeing a 13-year-old girl, who was 'married' and pregnant," she recalls.
"The government had put her destitute home for women. But she wasn't a 'woman'. That made us open a home for abused children. We took in about 50 abused children until the pandemic broke out."
'Safe, unsafe touch'
Cristelle says Dil Se has been organising awareness sessions in schools. "Sometimes abuse can feel good, but that does not mean it is safe. It may not be violent, but rather gently done. So, we educate children on safe and unsafe touches," she explains. "We also tell them about how to open up to trusted adults. For older kids, sex education covers puberty (both physical, mental and emotional changes), consent, sexuality and the laws."
Cristelle says she is glad that there has been little resistance to awareness classes. "Once a grandfather argued that such incidents don't happen in our state," she recalls.
"After the session, he appreciated it and bought our workbook for children aged four to six years. When it comes to child sexual abuse, some might think it happens only in big cities, or among certain communities or economically backward families. That's not true."
Student's perspective
Parvathy, a Malayali law student at Hidayatullah National Law University, Raipur, filed an impleading petition before the court when she read the first order from Judge Thomas on June 8.
"My mother is a school teacher at Providence Girls Higher Secondary School in Kozhikode," she says. "So I have an understanding of how children fall into traps. Since the start of 2022, I have given Pocso awareness classes in five schools in Kozhikode."
Parvathy says the only "sex education" classes she received in school were on menstruation. "And only girls were given the classes. Boys were sent for physical education training during those sessions," she adds. "Now, when I take classes, I ensure girls and boys are present for all the sessions."
At the end of the classes, Parvathy takes a survey of the students on their awareness levels. "The results were damning. I submitted them in court," she says.
"Most students think it is OK to have consensual physical relationships with others in their age group. Also, many of them said they were uncomfortable opening up to teachers. That's mainly due to fear of being judged and slut shaming. Also, many of them believe they would not be taken seriously."
In a survey covering 274 minor students, Parvathy highlights, 94.4% believed they could give consent, and 97.6% preferred opening up to someone young over their teachers.
Parvathy says the system needs to be enhanced. Students should be able to freely open up to teachers. "The fear should go. Only then will students complain, say, if a teacher abuses them," she adds. "Recently, in Malappuram, former students started revealing their ordeals only after their abuser retired."
'Erin's Law will help'
According to Dr Veena J S, a professor at a private college, Erin's Law would help, as the "components are child-friendly". She adds the first step is to demolish misconceptions. "Even an MLA termed gender-neutral uniforms as cross-dressing. Such unscientific resistance makes matters difficult," she says, "And children will suffer."