TEAM HERALD
teamherald@herald-goa.com
MARGAO: It was late evening on June 20. A four-year victim girl, who was sexually assaulted, was taken to the Hospicio hospital for medical examination. But, shockingly, the hospital declined to examine the girl under one pretext or the other.
A month later, there’s no change in the ground reality. Hospicio does not examine victims of rape and sexual assaults from South Goa, leaving the authorities with no option than to ferry the victims to the Goa Medical College, Bambolim, where neither the Protection of Children from Sexual Offences Act, 2012, nor any other law in force mandates examination of sexual assault victims by forensic experts only.
Sadly, the trauma undergone by the four-year old victim of sexual abuse when she was shunted from Hospicio to the Goa Medical College on June 20 night, has till date neither spurred the Directorate of Health Services nor Hospicio administration to put in place necessary arrangement for examination of victims of rape and sexual assault.
Hospicio Medical Superintendent P D Nachinolkar initially maintained that victims of sexual assault need to be examined by forensic experts, but later admitted that he will call a meeting with hospital doctors before putting the arrangement in place. “I will seek clarifications from the Health Director on the issue and also a hold a meeting with Hospicio doctors concerned with gynaecology, forensic, paediatric and casualty departments to understand their problems and the requisite infrastructure required for the purpose,” remarked Dr Nachinolkar.
Women’s rights activist, Auda Viegas said it is a myth that victims of sexual assault are to be examined only by forensic experts. “As per the provisions of the Protection of Children from Sexual Offences Act, 2012, the mode of examination of both the victim and the victim is as per the Cr PC, 1973. The doctors working in casualty or a gynaecologist, who is a registered medical practitioner having basic degree in MBBS is competent and duty-bound to conduct the examination of the victim and the accused,” Auda said.
She added: “The gynaecologists and medical officers, including females, at Hospicio refuse to treat victims of sexual assault on one pretext or the other. The treatment includes examination and medical treatment, psychological counselling of the traumatised, demoralised, shattered victims with compassion and documentation of findings.”
A senior forensic expert attached to the Goa Medical College, Bambolim, expressed surprise that Hospicio does not carry out examination of victims of sexual assault. “Nowhere, it is mentioned that victims of sexual assault have to be examined only by forensic experts and at the GMC. The Hospicio management should pull up its socks and implement the law in letter and spirit,” he said.
