Plenty Of Lessons For Us In Ayanavaram Child Sexual Assault Case, Say Activists

After a special court for POCSO cases, on Monday, sentenced five of the 15 persons convicted in the 2018 Ayanavaram child sexual assault case to life imprisonment, child rights activists say that publicity of the verdict may embolden people to come forward and report crimes.

- SV Krishna Chaitanya

However, there is a lot to be learnt from the way the case was handled, they said.

Even as the incident has been largely considered as gang rape, the public has wrongly assumed that all accused were involved in equal measure of sexual assault. However, the varying sentences delivered to the 16 convicts in itself suggests that the convicts were involved in different acts.

What constitutes a gang rape?

Based on a reading of the charges against the convicts, only five of them have been charged under the Section 6 of the POCSO Act. Further, 11 of the 15 were charged under Section 10 of the Act which states the punishment for aggravated sexual assault. Many were charged for other kinds of sexual harassment as well, which need not even involve physical contact.

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