Abuse picture goes viral, farmer held

According to Thevaram police, the incident occured on August 23. “The accused, Chinnasamy, belonged to Thamminayakkanpatti. The victim knew the accused as an elderly person in the village. He lured the victim, with chocolates and took her to the library, which was closed and sexually abused her outside. A complaint filed by the victim’s mother resulted in the accused being remanded and charged with the Protection of Children from Sexual Offences (POCSO) Act 2012,” said the source. 

The incident came to light when the photograph was circulated on social media, which subsequently drew the attention of child rights activists. 

Andrew Sesuraj, State convenor of Tamil Nadu Child Rights Observatory (TNCRO) said, “Once we got the information, we started contacting local NGOs in Theni. Another activist Geetha Narayanan went ahead to inform the Collector of Theni district as well as lodged a complaint with the CM’s Cell. We brought this to the notice of the police officials, who tracked the victim. They met the mother of the victim, who was initially not keen to file a complaint but later on, agreed. However, we have no idea on the condition of the victim and what kind of rehabilitation is available to her at the moment.”