CHENNAI: In an alarming incident, a 28-year-old tuition teacher and her male friend were arrested on Wednesday on charges of forcing a teenaged school student to pose for explicit videos. Police sources said they suspect the accused persons to have similarly abused, over the last few months, other children who come for class 10 and 12 tuitions conducted in the home of the woman.
Child safety experts say the incident has yet again come as a reminder to create a safe environment that will encourage children to speak out in case of facing such sexual abuses.
Police said the incident came to light when a 14-year-old girl lodged a complaint against her tuition teacher S Sanjana, 28, and her friend S Balaji, 38. She had told police that both of them had forced her to
pose in compromising position with another boy attending the tuition at Sanjana's house. Balaji had video graphed it and threatened to release it in the internet if she informs anyone about it.
So far only one girl has filed a written complaint. However, police are investigating to find whether other students were also similarly targeted by Sanjana and Balaji. Police sources said at least a few other students seems to have been victimised. A senior police officer supervising the investigations said it was a very unusual case since the abusers had forced the children to be intimate with one another and videographed it. The videos were later used to blackmail them. Police officers said only after further investigations it can be ascertained whether other children and how long they were abused.
Sanjana was taking tuition for class 10 and 12 students in her house and Balaji is a resident of the opposite house on the same street. He is said to have frequently visited Sanjana's house.
Vidya Reddy of Tulir - Centre for the Prevention and Healing of Child Sexual Abuse said the incident is a pointer of how technology is changing the way sexual crimes are committed. "Instead of panicking that home tuition are unsafe, one must look at the preemptive aspects of giving the children an idea of safety and ability to understand how people can exploit them," she said. Creating the trust in the child that he/she can safely speak out on the abuse they face is important.
"Sexual violence can not only involve two people but it could also a group of people coercing and cajoling and deceiving people to do such things for their gratification. We first need to ask whether we provide a non-judgmental congenial space for children to be able to talk about anything without being blamed or shamed. This should be the first step we should be working towards," Vidya Reddy said.
Vanessa Peter, policy researcher, Information and Resource Centre for the Deprived Urban Communities (IRCDUC) says there is a need for protection policies in education institutions and setting up of empowered and independent mechanism to review and monitor child protection processes in educational institutions and other organisations and area where children gather. Also, schools should start appointing counsellors and teachers and parents should be trained to observe behavioural changes in children.