Neighbours force children to stay away from rape victim’s siblings
Goa has shamed herself. As a sixteen year old girl, raped byher teacher, set fire to herself, Goa’s deepest demons emerged from the embers.
‘Rupa’ (name changed) was a student of a city based school.Her art teacher Kanhaiya Naik. a married man in his mid-30s, is said to haveallegedly raped the student at his flat on December 29, 2011. He had picked herup from her home telling the parents that he will give their daughter careerguidance as she was a slow learner. Naik was arrested subsequently and sent tojail but was released on bail on July 10, 2012. In her declaration to themagistrate, ‘Rupa’ had said that she was scared of his release.
A preliminary investigation has revealed that the girl waswith her aged grandmother when she poured kerosene on her body and burntherself. Her father, who works as a security guard, was on duty while hermother was out of station. Her two siblings were in the school. ‘Rupa’s postmortem contained no surprises. But a post mortem of how her neighbours,teachers behaved, reveals deep cuts on our moral fabric.
This should shock you. We hope it does. When she died at theGMC, the neighbours in the building told the family of the victim that it wouldbe a bad omen if her body was brought home. This is because another person diedin the building the same day. Theircontention was that everything happens in threes and arrival of the second bodycould be harbinger of the third death.
The body of “Rupa” went straight to the crematorium. Last week, a group of social workers visitedthe house of “Rupa”. The group was shocked to hear from children in thevicinity that they were forbidden from talking to “Rupa’s younger siblings,even though they study in the same school. In fact, one mother came down to the compound and pulled her daughteraway because she was chatting with the siblings
The flat in which Rupa lived in was a Goa governmentquarter, dark and gloomy from the outside and all through the staircase. The condition of the house from the inside iseven more dilapidated with the sight of huge iron rods sticking out indifferent places.
The victims of rape, they say, have to carry their memorieswith them for the rest of their lives. It appears that Rupa with no help from anyone succumbed to the heavyburden she carried all alone. Herteachers in school seemed to have ostracised her. No one turned up at herfuneral. Her neighbours saw her as a bad influence on their children and theNGO who filed the complaint failed her miserably with no support of any kindgiven to her.
Rupa’s mother had left for her village in May. With eachsupport sting snapped, Rupa tied herself in knots before she finally pulled theplug on her life.
The author, an ex-lecturer from People’s Higher Secondary,is the manager of a school in Goa. Sheassisted in the drafting of the Children’s Act and is also the convenor forCampaign Against Child Labour in Goa (CACL)
