On a day when the whole of India was praising their teachers for their guidance and knowledge,
swimming coach Surajit Ganguly who was employed with the Goa Swimming
Association (GSA), blotted this image with his heinous crime. He was arrested
in New Delhi as he is accused of allegedly raping a 15-year-old girl who was
training with him here in Goa. The young girl had to shoot the video herself to
make a watertight case against him. The coming to light of this incident has
grabbed the attention of the public, making parents question the safety of
their children in the hands of others, especially in the world of sports.
Goa’s Natasha Palha from Agassaim is a noted name on the
international tennis circuit. Back from the ITF International Tennis Federation
Pro Circuit tournament in Thailand in July, Natasha was shocked to hear the
news. “It is very saddening to hear of such an incident, especially in India,
where our culture teaches us that coaches are figures we should look up to and
respect. It is my belief that all young girls, especially under 18 years of
age, should be given a phone number where they can contact a lady supervisor in
the event of a male coach or senior taking advantage of them in an
inappropriate way. I also believe that all sports academies with a simple male
coach must have a woman coach or assistant present at all times,” says Natasha.
Fainna Fernandes from Mapusa was a national level footballer
with the Sports Authority of India; she represented Goa at the first U-19
nationals in football in the early 2000s. During her time in the sport, she did
not come across any such incident. “We used to have a female manager and an
assistant female coach as well as senior women footballers with us all the
time. They were very approachable and the coaches too were very understanding.
Since the coaches were Goans, we knew their families as well. I didn’t face any
difficulties or inappropriate behaviour in my sports career,” says Fainna, who
continued playing even as a professional.
For a father, his daughter is the apple of his eye and when
Vikram Verlekar, a businessman from Margao, learnt about the incident, he immediately
contacted his friends in Mapusa to know their experience. “This was shocking as
a parent. We trust our daughters with the coach and this made me doubt our
coaches as well. How can it even happen? When we employ someone, it is not done
without a background check and we expect the same from the institutions
appointing these coaches. In case of my 11-year-old daughter, Trischa, who
trains at BPS Club, Margao for table tennis, we have one family member with her
at all times. Children should also be explained the difference between a good
and bad touch. It is sad to see the unedited video being circulated around,”
says Vikram.
Jonathan Aron Faleiro, a PE teacher, who coaches girls in all
sports, was enraged when he received the news, on a day when students look up
to their teachers for their contribution. “It is such one off cases that
tarnish the name of the entire coaching and sports community. It is an added
responsibility to coach young girls and our students should feel comfortable
sharing their views and issues. We have a female teacher too and the girls can
always approach them with their problems. When it comes to correcting stance or
posture, we put ourselves in their place and show them how it’s done right,
through example,” says Jonathan.
Faranak Braganza from Dona Paula is a veteran table tennis
player. “It was a shocking revelation to know about the case in Goa. It is very
important to find out the background of the coaches. When we were young and
into sports, we had not heard of incidents like this. We used to have a male
and female PT teacher in school. There are no lady coaches available in Goa but
there must be at least one female attendant with the male coach. Young girls
are innocent and the schools should educate them about such behaviour. Even if
CCTVs are installed, if there is a man with the intention to molest young
girls, he will anyways find a way away from the cameras. It must be very
disturbing, especially for this young girl. Her parents should have trusted her
instinct and believed her before going to the extent of recording the video. As
parents, we have to be very cautious about our children and the people around
them,” says Faranak, a mother of two.
Dr
Harpreet Pasricha’s daughter, Nimrit, is number 5 in the Squash Rackets Federation
of India in the U-11 category. She is the first Goan girl to reach this
position. She trains at the Navy Club in Naval Officers Institute. “We are
confident about Coach Rehman as he is a Navy man and works within the Navy set
up. He has been here for almost 15-20 years. However, as a parent, you have to
be very cautious. I played table tennis at a national level since I was 8 years
old. It is not surprising receiving such news in India, where even a father can
rape a six-month-old and get away with it. It is so common and you have to be
on guard as parents. My younger daughter has also started playing squash but we
have explained to my elder daughter the difference between a good and bad touch
and to move away from the person. A coach must be a father figure but he is not
your father. Even for their practices, at least one parent is with them or we
send their nanny,” says Dr Harpreet.
