Proposals move forward to amend POSCO Act

NEW DELHI: A Senior official from The Women and Child Development (WCD) Ministry said that this week a proposal is set to move before Cabinet for enhanced punishment in cases of sexual assault of male children.

In 2012, the Law Ministry cleared the proposal to amend the Protection of Children from Sexual Offences (POSCO) Act for enhancing punishment in cases of sexual assault against young boys.

The official from the WCD Ministry said, “Amendments to the POSCO Act for enhanced punishment for sexual assaults of young boys have been approved by the Law Ministry. It will be sent to the Cabinet in two-three days.”

It is observed that not much details of the proposal were revealed. But the word is that the Ministry is working to amend death penalty to those convicted of raping children below 12 years.

Maneka Gandhi, WCD Minister, supported a petition on Change.org by Insia Dariwala, a filmaker- activist, who said, “male child sexual abuse is an ignored reality in India”.

She also added that the boys who are sexually abused as children spend a lifetime in silence because of the stigma and shame attached to male survivors speaking out.