Rape Victim ‘Living Happily’ With Alleged Rapist And Baby Conceived Through Abuse: Police

A suspended school headmaster in the Indian state of Odisha who was arrested in 2017 for allegedly raping a minor student has started cohabitating and "living happily" with his victim and their daughter after being released from prison, police said.

The unnamed headmaster of SSD Government Girls' High School in the district of Koraput was arrested in October 2017 and charged with sexual assault under the Indian Penal Code as well as the country's Protection of Children from Sexual Offences Act, The Times of India first reported, citing police.

A report by Odisha police submitted to the National Human Rights Commission (NHRC), however, claimed that the headmaster has started cohabitating and "living happily" with his rape victim and her child following his Nov. 16, 2020, release from prison, according to the outlet.

"[W]hen the accused headmaster came out on bail... he went to the village of the victim girl and brought her with him on her consent," the superintendent of police of Koraput was quoted as saying in the report.

The survivor then allegedly took her newborn daughter from the Child Care Center in Koraput and brought her to the headmaster's rented residence in the town of Burigumma.

"The victim is said to be happy with the accused and the girl child," police said.

The situation came to light after the NHRC sought a response from Odisha police on a complaint filed by advocate and human rights activist Radhakanta Tripathy, who alleged that tribal girls are being sexually exploited in the school and demanded to know the government's rehabilitation measures for the victim and the police's actions against the headmaster.

The minor has received compensation amounting to around $7,205 over the abuse, which was broken down into a payment of Rs 3.75 lakh ($5,050) ordered by the Odisha Human Rights Commissions, Rs 1.5 lakh ($2,020) from the District Legal Services and Rs 10,000 ($135) from the Indian Red Cross Society, according to police.

District authorities also provided her and her then-newborn child with medical and healthcare facilities following her birth.

Additionally, officials are reportedly still processing a demarcated piece of government land in the village of Khamara measuring 1,306 square feet for the victim.

There were no other pending criminal cases against the headmaster. He remains under suspension since his arrest.

Under the Supreme Court's directives on cases related to sexual assault, the victim's identity was not revealed to protect her privacy.