Videos show mother thrashing kids; ex-judge demands action
A retired judge of the Bombay High Court has written to the Mumbai Police, the State Human Rights Commission (SHRC) and the State Child Rights Commission over an instance of what appears to be physical abuse of two children by their mother.
Judge (Retd) SJ Kathawalla has also sent video recordings, which went viral on Tuesday. The FPJ has copies of the letters and the videos.
The videos show the mother screaming at her children, a girl and a boy, and repeatedly hitting them with a belt. The judge has also urged the authorities to take action against the “wrongdoers”.
Kathawalla has marked copies of his letters to the Chief Justice of the Bombay HC, Justice Devendra Kumar Upadhyaya, and Police Commissioner Vivek Phansalkar, requesting them to look into the matter. He has also expressed willingness to offer assistance in moving the children to a safe environment.
In the letter written to Susieben Shah, chairperson of the Child Rights Commission, he says, “I am forwarding three video clips which I have just come across. It can be seen from the said video clips that two minor, innocent and helpless, children are being mercilessly beaten up and tortured by a lady who appears to be their mother. The video clips shows that the mother is not only repeatedly belting the minor on more than one occasion, but she is using abusive language. She has almost threatened to kill them.”
The letter further reads, “I am of the view that it is dangerous to keep the children in her company, even for a minute, and that the minors should be shifted to a home where they are taken care off and fully protected... thus requesting the commission to enquire and take necessary action in the matter at the earliest.”
The letter to SHRC Chairman Justice (Retd) KK Tated also refers to the videos and requests the panel to take cognisance of the case.
Kathawalla, while speaking to the FPJ, said, “Referring to the video, it appears that the couple must be going through some domestic disputes, but it should not be vented out on children. Even though the video is a year old, it definitely calls for a probe and hence I have written it to the concerned authorities, to take up the matter at its earliest.”
Kathawalla confirmed that he had received a phone call from the Social Service Department of the Mumbai Police, “In such a case, an FIR should be filed against both the parents, first for allegedly physically abusing them, and second for allegedly ‘simply filming’ the entire alleged assault,”Kathawalla said.
According to a senior police official, the video is not of a recent incident. Yet the Vanrai police have taken cognisance and have recorded the statements of the mother, father and the two children.