3-year-old girl provoked the accused to sexually assault her, shameful statement by Tamil Nadu IAS, removed
Mayiladuthurai Collector AP Mahabharathi in Tamil Nadu had given a controversial statement on the POCSO case involving a three-year-old girl. He said that the girl herself may have instigated the accused boy. Just hours after this statement, he was removed from his post on Friday evening. Erode Municipal Corporation Commissioner HS Srikanth was appointed as the new collector in his place.
This case is of a 16-year-old boy. He is accused of sexually assaulting a 3-year-old school-going girl. Police said that the boy tried to misbehave with the girl. When the girl tried to run away, the boy attacked her with a brick. This caused injuries to the girl’s head and face. The boy was taken into custody by the police on Tuesday.
Said in the meeting of POCSO Act
A video of Collector Mahabharathi is going viral in this case. In this video, he is speaking in a meeting on POCSO Act. In the video, he is heard saying that both the parties should be heard before reaching any conclusion. He said, ‘According to the information I have received, the girl had spat on the boy’s face in the morning. Maybe that’s why the boy did this. It is important to see both sides.’
IAS clarified after the controversy
After the controversy, AP Mahabharatti clarified. He said, ‘My comments were taken in the wrong way.’ He said, ‘My intention was not wrong. I said this with good intentions.’
Annamalai got angry
Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) state president Annamalai strongly condemned the collector in this matter. He wrote on Twitter, ‘The District Collector of Mayiladuthurai has claimed that the three and a half year old victim is also to some extent guilty in this horrific sexual assault case. On behalf of BJP Tamil Nadu, we strongly condemn this shameful comment of his.’
Annamalai further said, ‘The Chief Minister and the Minister have been constantly blaming the victims and making their personal information public. This is the reason why the District Collector has given such a statement.’
DMK MP also spoke
Dravida Munnetra Kazhagam (DMK) MP Kanimozhi also reacted to this statement. She said, ‘How can such people call themselves educated or human beings? And why are we expected to tolerate such things?’ This incident raises a serious question about what kind of language should officials use in sensitive cases like sexual abuse of children. The collector’s statement is extremely irresponsible and has caused further pain to the victim and her family. The government should take strict action in this matter so that such statements are not made in the future. The safety of children is our biggest responsibility and we should take every possible step for this.
