Aarushi Talwar's murder by her parents, has become a wake up call for working parents living in the city. They are now thinking twice before leaving their kids in the care of domestic help.
Most parents admit they would be enraged if placed in a similar situation but would rather communicate with the child than consider filicide (the deliberate act of killing one's child).
Lisa Thomas who is a working mother of a 13-year-old says that she shudders at the sheer thought of filicide. “In a similar situation, I would be angry, but my daughter is at an age where she doesn’t understand the implications of a sexual liaison. Instead of coming down heavy on her, it is important to educate her about negative impact of such liasions,” she expresses.
Venu Nair, another parent says, “Even before Aarushi, the idea of having a male servant at home was unthinkable.” He adds that if required, one of the parents should quit their job and stay home for their child’s well being.
Both, psychologist Anand Rao and Dr K John Vijay Sagar, a professor at the department of child and adolescent psychiatry at NIMHANS concur that if the parents are away at work and the only elder at home is the domestic help, the child (under 14) is likely to get attached to him or her.
“There must be an open channel of communication between the parents and child at all times," insists Dr John while Dr Anand adds, “If parents can't deal with a situation, they must consult psychologists instead of taking drastic steps."
GK Karanth, a professor of sociology at the Institute of Social and Economic Change opines, “Indian society has not yet woken up to problems regarding leaving a child home alone. It is prohibited in Western countries to leave a child (less than 14) alone without supervision."
Kamal Pant, additional commissioner law and order, states, “One only needs to submit an ID proof of the person and an application for verification at the nearest police station.“
