A 57-year-old woman who had been engaged as a babysitter for a two-and-a-half-year-old child at the residence of a working couple has been arrested for allegedly beating the child when the parents were away, police said.
The child’s mother, Manamee Pal, allegedly saw the babysitter hitting her child in CCTV footage on her mobile phone. She lodged a complaint with Haridevpur police station.
“The child’s mother works in a bank and had engaged an elderly woman to babysit her child. She had installed CCTV cameras in her house and installed an app on her phone through which she could access the live CCTV footage,” said an officer of the police station.
Pal reported to the police that she had spotted the woman beating her child around 10.20pm on Monday, when she and her husband were not at home. “According to the complaint, the woman punched the child. The child’s mother lodged a complaint with the police station on Tuesday, based on which the woman has been arrested,” said deputy commissioner (south-west) Saumya Roy.
The woman, a resident of Regent Park on the city’s southern fringes, has been charged with wrongful restraint and assault. Several working couples across the city who live in nuclear families find it difficult to manage their infants while at work. Some drop their kids off at creches, while some arrange for babysitters at home to take care of the little ones while they are away.
According to the police, it is always important to closely monitor the mental and physical health of children who are left in the hands of strangers for several hours every day while their parents work.
“Kids are the most vulnerable as they can neither express themselves properly nor do they understand the difference between a good and a bad touch. It is essential for parents to keep track of the behavioural pattern of the kids and if they are scared of going back to a particular person or place,” said a senior officer at Lalbazar.
“While hiring a help at home, it is important to send the person’s details to the local police station,” said the officer.