Mandir: After phone threat,
FB messages disturb complainant
EXPRESS NEWS SERVICE
DECEMBER 19
OVER a month after advocate Anjali Pawar-
Kate, director of voluntary organisation Sakhee
and the main complainant in the alleged Preet
Mandir adoption racket approached Sahakarnagar
police over telephone threats believed to be
from a member of a South African adoptive family,
she’s now troubled by derogatory messages on
Facebook, posted in the community ‘Against
Child Trafficking’ on FB, by some other international
adoptive families.
“Although the messages do not name me, anyone
familiar with the case will understand they are targeted
at me. I tried approaching police, but they
replied nothing much can be done except writing a
letter to the Central Adoption Resources Agency
(CARA) to request the families to stop posting such
messages,” said Kate.
The messages began in early in November when
an adoptive parent wrote to Pawar stating ‘...Babies
are victims, and in this case also adoptive parents
are victims. And You? You are only an activist...
You can also use these poor and sick babies
for political interests. You have your affairs, your
business, because this is your work and you’r doing
it very well (I foresee a bright future for you!). Certainly
this is not a charitable mission...’ Another message reads ‘.. Shame!’
At least four similar messages have been posted on
Facebook. “This is emotional harrassment and
there is no way of retaliating. The police at least
filed a non-cognisable complaint after the threat
call on phone. But they seem helpless in this matter.
It is becoming difficult for me to concentrate on
the case due to these messages,” Pawar said.
It was in 2007 that Pawar had filed a criminal writ
petition in the Bombay High Court against an alleged
adoption racket in Preet Mandir. In May this
year, the CBI registered a case against Preet Mandir
managing trustee Joginder Singh Bhasin and some
state government officials for alleged involvement in
an inter-country adoption racket.
Bhasin was arrested in August after which he was
let out on conditional bail.
ORPHANAGES
UNDER WATCH
?The six-member Coordination Committee
for Child Protection appointed
by the Maharashtra government recently
includes H B Rathod, Deputy
Commissioner (Child Development),
Department of Women and Child Development,
Pune.
?The panel, set up after the Bombay
High Court reprimanded the government
for the death of five children
within two months in an orphanage,
will inspect and look at facilities at orphanages
and children’s homes.
? The committee is chaired by Asha Bajpai,
professor of Law at the Tata Institute
of Social Science. Dr Harish Shetty
(Mental Health Expert), Anjali Gokaran
(Social Worker), Chitrakala Acharya
(Childline) and Sarita Shankaran (NGO)
are the other members.
?“The committee is expected to coordinate
with existing structures and
schemes of the Department of Women
and Child Welfare for protection of children
in institutions. The committee can
make surprise visits to children’s institutions
and assess the quality of care. It
can also recommend improvements in
orphanages,” a release said.
