10-Year-Old's Sketches Help Send Sexually Abusive Uncle To Jail

A 10-year-old girl’s drawings about her sexual assault have been used to send the uncle who had abused her to jail. The girl had been staying with her aunt in Delhi, after her alcoholic father abandoned her when her mother passed away.

Her aunt treated her badly, making her work in another house. Her uncle sexually assaulted her repeatedly, said the court.

The girl ran away in November 2014, and her uncle was arrested last June. However, he was not charged because his lawyer said that the girl could not be considered a ‘competent witness’ and that she had been tutored to accuse him of rape.

The case took an unexpected turn when the girl was given paper and crayons to keep her occupied during the hearing. Her sketches are dark and indicative of what she went through. She depicts a girl holding balloons in an abandoned house. There is a dress lying next to her, and the colours she uses are ‘gloomy’.

Source: Times of India

"If the elements of this drawing are considered in the background of facts and circumstances of this case, then commission of sexual assault upon her by somebody in her house after undressing her, and it leaving an impression upon her mind, becomes evident," said Additional Sessions Judge Vinod Yadav.

She was found in a bus in November 2014. The HAQ Centre for Child Rights counselled her, and she told them about her assault. It took them until June of last year to trace the accused.

The girl’s medical examination also indicated possible sexual assault. The uncle was charged with five years' of prison time, and a fine of Rs 10,000.

The girl is now living in a children’s home and attending school. The court has ordered a compensation of Rs 3 lakh in fixed deposits for her care.

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