POCSO and domestic violence as weapons of revenge

'No one should ever have to go through such an experience like this ever again. I am happy that the court, understanding the mental anguish and humiliation that I, as a teacher, have faced for so long, has ensured justice." - These are the words of Prof. Anand Viswanathan, who was acquitted after ten years of facing allegations of harassment from female students in retaliation for catching them cheating in exams. This cannot be dismissed as an isolated incident. The fact that violence against women and POCSO charges are becoming sharp weapons for revenge is a matter that needs to be taken seriously. The contempt and isolation that one faces from society after being accused in such cases is unbearable for any person.

Various legal groups that have conducted studies in this regard have found that forty percent of the POCSO cases registered in India are fake. New laws have been passed ensuring strict punishments for such crimes with the good intention of protecting women and children from sexual harassment and other physical harm. It is concerning that the number of people who misuse these laws for revenge is increasing. Although higher courts have ruled that the police should conduct a preliminary investigation into such complaints and ensure that the complaint is not false, the police department usually resorts to registering cases in the first place without bothering to follow the court directive.

Filing complaints that daughters have been abused by their fathers has become a recurring incident when there is a dispute over child custody in divorce cases. Similarly, the number of girls who file rape cases against men after they have a falling out, after they have been together by mutual consent, is also not low in numbers. There are many cases in Kerala itself of those who have been imprisoned in fake POCSO cases and complaints of harassment against women. Prof. Anand Viswanath is the most recent one to be acquitted. The incident in question took place between August 27 and September 5, 2014, at Government College, Munnar. The false harassment complaint by the students and subsequent legal action were in retaliation for the head of the economics department and additional chief examiner Anand Viswanathan reporting the five female students cheating in the M.A. Economics exam. The professor had to endure mental torture and litigate the case for a decade for a crime that he did not commit.

A 75-year-old man from Alappuzha had to spend 285 days in jail for a statement given by a victim to save her boyfriend. The Alappuzha Sessions POCSO Court finally acquitted the elderly man after the victim revealed the truth during the trial. Another POCSO case was reported in Kilimanoor, where a student was used as a scapegoat in a fierce feud between teachers. The law should be amended to provide heavy compensation to the accused who are caught in such false complaints. Otherwise, the number of such complaints will not decrease.