Madras HC lambasts police for mishandling child rape case, wrongfully targeting journalists

The Madras High Court lambasted the Chennai police for multiple lapses in the investigation of the Anna Nagar child rape case. In an order passed on October 1, which was uploaded to the website recently, the court said that the procedures followed in registering the case and conducting investigation were in violation of the POCSO Act. The court also came down heavily on the police for filing cases against journalists who reported on the case, instead of finding those in the police force who violated protocols while dealing with the case.

The case pertains to the alleged sexual assault of a 10-year-old girl in Chennai on August 29. The parents of the girl alleged that they were beaten up by the Inspector of the Anna Nagar All Women’s Police Station (AWPS) during the wee hours of August 31, when they went to report the crime. In addition to this, an audio clip of the survivor recording her statement was circulated on social media platforms. Reprimanding the police for its misconduct in the investigation, the court has transferred the case to the CBI.

An FIR was filed against Times of India journalist A Selvaraj and YouTuber Maridhas, for circulating the audio clips and reporting on it.

The court came down heavily upon the police for prolonged delay in arresting the accused, despite the fact that the accused is residing next door to the survivor. The bench also said that it is “impermissible” that the survivor child was harassed at the hospital and her statement was recorded during the late hours of night.

The judges also said that they do not appreciate the cases registered against journalists. “The publications are made, on receipt of the videograph or information. Therefore, the police are expected to conduct a thorough enquiry and identify the persons, who all are the real accused disclosed the audio and video to the journalist. Thus, merely registering a case against the journalist would do no service to the cause of justice.”

The court also said that the practice of registering cases only against the journalists and YouTubers, instead of the real accused behind the leak, “is with an idea to cause threat to the Freedom of Press”. “Freedom of Press being a Constitutional Right, it cannot be compromised. Whenever such nature of publications are made, police are expected to find out the real accused, who provided such videographs and information to the Journalist instead of registering criminal cases only against the Journalist,” the court said.

The court was hearing two petitions - a suo motu case initiated by the Madras High Court; and a habeas corpus petition filed by the mother of the child, seeking to produce the child before the court and hand over to the parents and to provide medical treatment, protection, as well as adequate compensation to the child. The mother also sought that disciplinary proceedings should be initiated against the concerned police officials.

A bench of Justices SM Subramaniam and V Sivagnanam said that the procedures followed by the police and the treatment of the minor and her parents were directly in violation of POCSO Act. While transferring the case to the CBI, the court also said that the actions of the police raised “serious doubts and suspicion” leading to the survivor losing their confidence in the police.

The survivor child was taken to a hospital after she fell sick on August 29, and the doctors had informed one of the parents that the child had been raped. The survivor had first named her neighbour Satish, a 30-year-old water can supplier, as the accused. The survivor’s mother filed a complaint against Satish with the Anna Nagar AWPS. However, according to the police, the survivor later changed her statement and named a minor boy, who is related to her, as having sexually assaulted her two years ago. But the mother of the survivor told TNM that the survivor had been threatened by AWPS Inspector Rajeev to change her statement. The police initially did not arrest Satish by claiming that there was no sufficient evidence. However, as the incident was reported by the media, the police arrested Satish. 

Meanwhile, the audio clip where the child changes her statement and names a minor instead was circulated on social media platforms since September 8. TNM had reported on how the leak of the 10-minute audio clip is a serious violation of POCSO Act. In the audio clip, the child first expresses how terrified she is of the police hitting her. After assurances from the woman officer in conversation with her, she continues to record her statement, saying that Satish (whom she had earlier accused of raping her) was not responsible for the sexual assault and names a minor boy as having abused her two years ago.

In addition to transferring the case to the CBI, the court also directed to provide necessary police protection to the survivor and her family.