Alappuzha: The sexual abuses of children continue to rise in the state with Malappuram district topping the list and Kerala itself remaining among the five states with the most number of cases registered under the Protection of Children from Sexual Offences (POCSO) Act in 2014.
As per the data published on the official website of Kerala police, at least 1,427cases were registered in the state till November last year recording a jump from 1,380 in 2014.
The POCSO cases in 2013 were 1002. The conviction rate under the Act is no more than 2.4 per cent. Ms J. Sandhya, member, Kerala State Commission for Protection of Child Rights (KSCPCR), says the data points to the rising atrocities against children in spite of the awareness campaigns.
Many cases go unreported as parents are not willing to register a case, she says. As per the National Crime Records Bureau (NCRB), the offenders in only 535 cases were convicted out of 6,816 FIRs filed under the Act.
It was in 2012 the POCSO Act was introduced that had raised the age of consent for girls from 16 to 18 stipulating that a child’s testimony and circumstantial evidence would be taken as clinching proof.
Kerala police had filed 596 FIRs and chargesheets in 419 cases from November 2012 to June 2013, but there were no convictions. Mr K.K. Jospeh, member, Child Welfare Committee here, says that sexual assault cases in the district were increasing. “We have launched a several campaigns and set up panchayat-level committees to make people aware of the law,” he said.
