A year and a half ago, an eightyear-old speech and hearing impaired girl, Smita was raped in Mumbai. She was taken to Nair Hospital bruised and bleeding. The girl was raped a day earlier and treated at a small civic hospital. The doctors and the police later decided to transfer her case to Nair Hospital, which takes care of child victims , especially those abused or raped.
Smita has still not recovered from the nightmare she was subjected to. Total withdrawal from people she knew, including her parents, sleep disturbances and inability to express emotions marked the days that followed her rape. Over the last 18 months, a team at Nair Hospital has worked on her case. While the smile has now returned to Smita’s face, it is mostly fleeting—the road to recovery is a long-winding one.
Seema, 14, had entered the gynaecology out-patient department of Nair Hospital almost two years ago along with her mother. The girl, who was pregnant, told the doctors on duty that a stranger had raped her. Her tale, though, seemed to have some missing links. That, indeed, was the case as her mother approached the forensic department head after a few days and said Seema wanted to talk. The doctors then discovered that the girl’s first cousin had developed a physical relationship with her and made her pregnant in the process.
Though the cousin had asked Seema to keep mum, the girl, with the help of trained psychiatrists, counsellors and NGO workers, gathered the courage to let the truth out.
For every Smita and Seema, who get help sooner or later, there are countless other victims of child abuse whose cases go unreported for various reasons. Till August-end,118 rape cases were registered in Greater Mumbai. While a break-up of the number of minors was not available, recent statistics released by the CID, Maharashtra government, indicated that there was a 23% rise in crimes against children.
Alarmingly, Mumbai has just one dedicated child protection centre at Nair Hospital. There are, of course, NGOs that help victims of child abuse, but these kids find little or no solace at the government level.
The irony is that National Human Rights Commission recently issued guidelines for speedy disposal of child rape cases. It recommended that the probe be completed within three months and trial held in a childfriendly atmosphere. The guidelines says the investigating officer has to
ensure that medical test of the vic tim and the accused be done within 24 hours. The chief medical officers should make sure that the tests are done soon after receiving the request.
The process requires a lot of coordination.“There is goodwill among doctors, but that’s not enough. There should be systematic protocol and coordination between departments like health and home,’’ said a doctor.
Unfortunately, not many doctors in Mumbai are adequately trained to deal with children who have been sexually assaulted. During their second-year studies, they are taught how to handle general trauma victi ms and that too for a brief period. The fact that most cases of child rape collapse even when they reach
the court is because the doctors do not scientifically collect evidence.
A private doctor can collect evidence and keep it for future use, but that rarely happens as most of them keep off what they call ‘medico-legal’ cases. “Survivors of sexual assault need medical treatment and counselling. Some of them may also wish to file a case against their assailant(s). In some countries, women can authorise the collection of evidence, which has to be done as soon as possible to develop a strong case. But they may withhold, for a reasonable period, their decision to pursue the case. They may first seek advice on whether they should file a case,’’ said Dr Amita Pitre, who works in the area of sexual assault.
According to Dr Pitre, this option does not exist in India. “Some hospitals require the survivor to file an FIR before they proceed with an examination. Most public hospitals inform the police before they examine a woman or child . In many cases, the police bring in the survivor for examination. During our interaction, the police said either an FIR or a formal request from the police was needed before the examination.
“There do not seem to be any guidelines for this practice but at least one textbook clearly states that ‘the victim should not be examined without requisition from (the) investigating police officer or magistrate’. A public prosecutor said prior examination would amount to collecting evidence before filing an FIR, which would not be admissible in a court of law,’’ explained Dr Pitre.
CEHAT (Centre for Enquiry into Health and Allied Themes), an NGO, had launched standardised sexual assault evidence collection kits almost a decade ago. The kits included protocols and the equipment necessary for examination and care.
Gynaecologist Dr Duru Shah tried, through a short film titled ‘Body and Soul’ to sensitise the medical community on the sexual abuse of young girls . But it was a limiting effort because at the government level, there was a tug-of-war between the legal and home departments over where the buck had to stop.
The problem is compounded by the lack of medical personnel specialising in forensic science. Even at Nair Hospital, the child protection centre is understaffed, while the forensic department at KEM Hospital has a skeletal staff. There are seven seats for specialising in forensic science, but often even these are not filled. “What’s the chance of having a private clinic or hospital if someone chooses this field? One can become a lecturer at best,’’ said a doctor.