Case against principal and staff for beating 16-year-old autistic boy

THIRUVALLA: The Thiruvalla police registered a case against two people on the complaint of beating a 16-year-old autistic boy at a shelter home. Principal Sister Sheeja of Thiruvananthapuram Vellarada Koothadi Sneha Bhavan Special School and a staff identified as Sister Rosy have been arraigned in the case. A case has been registered against them under the Juvenile and Disability Protection Act. The complaint was filed by a native of Mepral Ambalathumparambil in Pathanamthitta.

The boy was brought to Sneha Bhavan on June 27 in 2023. His parents had noticed some beat marks on his body when he came home for Christmas. When asked the principal about this, she said that he was beaten for not obeying and later apologized.

When the boy was brought home from Sneha Bhavan for Easter, some beat marks were seen again. His mother asked him about it. When she did not get an apt answer from him, she contacted Sister Sheeja on the phone. The principal then replied that the boy ran from the convent on March 7 and entered a nearby house and the woman there beat him with a stick.

She later informed her relative of Thiruvananthapuram about it. The relative contacted the principal on the phone and asked the address of the woman who beat the autistic boy. The complaint said the principal then said that she beat the boy. Soon, principal Sister Sheeja and two other sisters came to the boy’s house in Mepral. After arriving here, the principal then confessed that Sister Rosy, in charge of the convent, beat the boy.

According to the report of the doctor who examined the marks on the boy’s body, medical officer S Shalini informed the child welfare committee. After this, a police team headed by Pulikeezhu sub inspector recorded the statement of the boy’s mother.