APSHRC takes suo motu cognisance
Correspondent
PASIGHAT, 30 Oct: The Pasighat police on Wednesday arrested the boys’ hostel warden of Sanggo English School in Mebo in East Siang district for sexually assaulting minor boy students of the hostel.
As per complaints, 33-year-old hostel warden Hen Johnson Baithei, hailing from Manipur, sexuallyassaulted hostel students over a long period.
The report of his activities came to the fore after a boy student suffered from urogenital complication and was admitted to Bakin Pertin General Hospital for treatment on Wednesday.
A case under Sections 4(2) and 6 of the POCSO Act has been registered at the women police station here against the accused and investigation is being carried out by Sub-inspector K Tangha of the Pasighat PS.
Police said that the accused during interrogation admitted to his deeds.
The accused was produced before the magistrate in Pasighat on Thursday, and has been remanded to 14-day judicial custody.
Meanwhile, the school’s principal expressed ignorance about the misdeeds committed by his staffer.
The incident has evoked massive backlash from the parents and guardians, as well as the public of the district, who have demanded stringent legal action against the accused warden.
In view of the sensitive nature of the incident, CRPF personnel have been deployed at the school for conducting the ongoing mid-term examination.
East Siang DDSE Odhuk Tabing and other Education Department officials of the district visited the school and took stock of the situation.
APSHRC takes suo motu cognisance
Meanwhile, the Arunachal Pradesh State Human Rights Commission (APSHRC) has taken suo motu cognisance of the alleged sexual molestation of minor students at Sanggo Residential English School in Mebo.
The incident came under the APSHRC’s radar through a media report published by ADI News on 29 October, which alleged that the warden of the boys’ hostel, Baithei, was involved in sexually abusing three minor students studying in Classes 1, 6, and 8.
Terming the incident “a serious violation of human rights of children guaranteed under Article 21 of the Constitution and protected by the Protection of Children from Sexual Offences (POCSO) Act, 2012,” the commission underscored the urgent need for accountability, victim protection, and institutional reform.
Exercising powers under Sections 12(a), 13(1), and 17 of the Protection of Human Rights Act, 1993, the single bench of the commission in an order on Thursday sought at detailed action taken report from the East Siang SP within 15 days, covering the status of investigation, medical examination, and protection of victims.
It also asked the deputy commissioner-cum-district child protection officer to provide
a comprehensive report on the school’s management, hostel safety, and psychosocial counselling provided to the affected children under the juvenile justice framework.
It directed the principal of Sanggo Residential English School to appear before the commission on 13 November with all relevant records, “including staff details, hostel management minutes, and child protection policy, if any.”
The commission also asked the education commissioner to ensure that effective child protection mechanisms are instituted in all residential schools and hostels across the state, and to submit an action taken report within two months.
Copies of the order have also been sent to the chairperson of the Arunachal Pradesh State Commission for Protection of Child Rights and the chief secretary for joint monitoring and coordinated follow-up action.
