In the precincts of Karnataka’s Shivamogga district, there has been a notable surge in instances entailing the Protection of Children from Sexual Offences (POCSO) Act, with a tally of 468 cases logged over the preceding triennium, as per official accounts.
Principal among these occurrences is the perpetration of violence against female scholars, predominantly those attending institutions of higher learning, with a substantial portion of the transgressions being perpetrated by familiar faces and neighboring denizens. Furthermore, there has been a lamentable frequency of underage matrimonial unions.
Significant efforts have been devoted to propagating awareness regarding sexual misconduct and the tenets enshrined within the POCSO Act, particularly within the educational echelons, via concerted campaigns spearheaded by the District Child Protection Unit, officials disclosed.
A delineation of the incidences of sexual misconduct over the past three years unveils the following statistics:
In the annals of 2022, a tally of 117 cases was inscribed in the records, of which 65 were adjudicated upon, leaving 52 cases in a state of limbo.
Fast-forwarding to the subsequent annum of 2023, the rosters documented a total of 152 instances, with 51 being resolved, while 101 remain unresolved.
Transitioning into the present annum of 2024, a count of 44 cases had been collated by the time March concluded.
Regarding the sphere of child matrimonial entanglements:
In the calendar year of 2022, a register of 54 cases was etched, with 26 undergoing resolution, leaving an identical figure of 26 cases in abeyance.
The following year, 2023, bore witness to 66 instances being chronicled, with a meager 11 finding closure, while the remaining 55 lingered in a state of indeterminacy.
As for the ongoing year of 2024, a sum of 35 cases had been annotated up until the conclusion of March.
“Even in an erudite enclave such as Shivamogga, the incidence of POCSO-related litigations has been pronounced. An educational outreach initiative is currently underway across schools and colleges,” affirmed Manjunath, the District Child Protection Officer.
Expounding further, Manjunath explicated, “In instances governed by the purview of the POCSO Act, penalties may range from a minimum of 3 to a maximum of 5 years of confinement, with severe infractions attracting custodial sentences extending from 14 to 20 years. Furthermore, culpability in matters pertaining to child betrothal could incur a fine of Rs 1 lakh alongside a prison term of 2 years. We have established a dedicated helpline (1098) to report instances of child nuptials and POCSO-related transgressions. The prevalence of such occurrences is particularly pronounced in the rural hinterlands,” he attested.
