Team Goemkarponn
PANAJI: Following accusations of alleged misbehavior by officers of the Women Police Station (WPS) towards Committee members during the investigation of a sexual assault case, the Goa Human Rights Commission (GHRC) has asked for improved cooperation between the police and the Child Welfare Committee (CWC).
The order issued by Member Pramod Kamat and Acting Chairperson Desmond D’Costa of the GHRC states, “The Commission expects better cooperation between the complainant (CWC, North Goa) and the respondent (Director General of Police) in the future when dealing with victims of sexual abuse.”
The GHRC received a complaint from the CWC Chairperson and members about a situation in which the WPS repeatedly administered psychological examinations to a juvenile victim of sexual assault at the Institute of Psychiatry and Human Behaviour (IPHB), Bambolim, in defiance of explicit directives to the contrary.
The lawsuit also claimed that WPS officials had behaved rudely toward the CWC.
The complainants claim that the process had already been finished by officials at Apna Ghar, where the victim was housed following the event.
As a result, the CWC advised the WPS to refrain from giving the child multiple evaluations.
The police apparently ignored this request, though, and transported the boy to IPHB, Bambolim, for another psychological evaluation.
“On January 15, 2025, the Chairperson called the Women Police Station’s police inspector to ask about the re-examination in spite of previous testing at Apna Ghar, and the officer allegedly gave a nasty and derogatory response. According to the complaint, the officer acted rudely over the phone, was uncooperative, and would not let the chairperson address concerns.
Following the event, the CWC requested that the GHRC conduct an investigation, take strong action against the negligent officials, and issue guidelines to guarantee that the correct protocol was followed for psychological evaluations of POCSO victims.
The Committee also called for action to defend and preserve the rights of young people who have been sexually abused.
