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HomeIndiaGovernanceBihar NGOs running shelter homes allege harassment by govt after ‘mass rape’...

Bihar NGOs running shelter homes allege harassment by govt after ‘mass rape’ case

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While some have already pulled out, a few are on the verge of quitting; say govt response has been ‘vindictive’ since the incident came to light.  

New Delhi: At least a dozen NGOs running Bihar government-funded shelter homes have either pulled out of the scheme or are in the process of surrendering the homes, alleging harassment by the state government in the wake of the alleged sexual abuse of 34 minors in Muzaffarpur.

The incident came to light following a “social audit” of 110 government–funded shelter homes in Bihar by the Tata Institute of Social Science (TISS).

While expressing their outrage over the incident, civil society organisations have condemned the state’s action towards other shelter homes, claiming it is merely a “knee-jerk reaction” to cover up its own inadequacies.

“The state’s response to the report has been simply vindictive,” Pramod Sharma, an official from Centre Direct, a shelter home in Sitamarhi district of Bihar said.

“We all condemn the criminal acts, but the state’s reaction towards other shelter homes has been disproportionate,” he added.


Also read: Every 6 hours a girl is getting raped, what are you doing about it: SC pulls up Bihar govt


SC took cognisance of ‘mass rape’

The Supreme Court on 2 August took cognisance of the alleged mass rape of 34 girls in a government-funded shelter home after it received a letter from Patna-based activist Ranvijay.

On 7 August, senior advocate Ranjit Kumar, representing Bihar, said the state government had taken action against the institutions named in the report. “There were nine institutions that were flagged over concerns of sexual abuse,” he added, saying action had been initiated against erring officials and nine FIRs registered.

Sakhi, a Sitamarhi-based shelter home for victims of human trafficking and domestic violence, was one of the homes blacklisted by the audit report. An FIR under relevant sections of the POCSO Act has been filed against it.

Calling the accusations “unjust and unfounded”, Suman Singh, secretary of the NGO said the charges have been framed against them in haste and without prior investigation.

“I have been accused of harassing patients who are mentally challenged,” Singh said. However, questioning the report, she asked how TISS volunteers could decide the fate of her life’s work on the basis of statements of a few inmates.

“How can a team of trained experts conclude their findings on the say-so of a mentally challenged patient with no representation,” she asked.

Speaking to ThePrint, representatives from many NGOs said they have decided to surrender the shelter homes they are running. Some say they are contemplating serving notices to the state government, expressing their intention to pull out of the schemes.

“The state’s reaction smacks of lack of accountability in the system. The state is now compensating for its failure by attacking NGOs which are doing the work they are supposed to do,” Sharma said.

Earlier this month, Centre Direct wrote a letter to the state social welfare department submitting its intent to surrender the shelter home. “The local media and the state machinery has vilified all NGOs, even those which are doing genuinely good work and making a difference,” Sharma added.

Y.K. Gautam, Bihar coordinator of Action Against Trafficking and Sexual Exploitation of Children (ATSEC), who has been engaged in social work for more than three decades, said: “At this stage in my life, I cannot bear to live or work in an environment, or be in a position where such allegations can be levelled against me”.

“This decision is hard but it needs to be taken. We will give the state two months to make alternative arrangements for those who are currently under our care before we dissociate ourselves completely,” he said.

Singh claims two years ago, she had raised the shortcomings in the state machinery and the difficulties faced by shelter homes. “Earlier this year, we wrote to the state expressing our desire not to renew the contract and surrender the shelter home,” she said.

“In fact, the shelter home had already shut shop months before the FIR was filed,” she added.

The Bhartiya Jan Utthan Parishad, a Nalanda-based shelter home for boys is just a year old. It has received a positive feedback in the audit report. However, the climate of unrest and fear has forced Abhishek Bharatiya, the general secretary of the NGO, to rethink his association with the state.

“We are a home for runaway boys and hence we have to keep them locked in. Now, there is a danger of our methods being misconstrued against us,” he said.

“So tomorrow, if someone pulls us up, and files an FIR against us, what will we do?” he asked.

Apart from Sakhi, there was no FIR against any of the NGOs ThePrint spoke to. However, they all expressed their desire to withdraw from the government schemes.

“The TISS report has done more harm than good,” said Ranvijay on whose letter the Supreme Court took note of the Bihar ‘mass rape’ incident.

“With the NGOs now pulling out because of the state’s ineptness in handling the situation, the women and children are the real losers in all this now,” he said.


Also read: This ordinary Tohana temple is where Baba Amarpuri allegedly raped and filmed 60 women


 

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