Tiruvannamalai: About 15 minor girls were rescued from a shelter home in the Tiruvannamalai district, Tamil Nadu, after a sexual harassment complaint was raised against their in-charge. The shelter home owner has been arrested under the Protection of Children from Sexual Offences (POCSO) Act.

The accused is identified as Vinod Kumar (32), who is in charge of a shelter home in Tiruvannamalai.

According to reports, a police team led by the district collector KS Kandasamy visited the shelter home on Tuesday evening and sealed the premises after the issue came to light when some of the inmates informed the authorities about the alleged sexual abuse during a recent safety campaign.

The minor girls also alleged that the home in-charge reportedly made them watch pornography before abusing them. The girls further claimed that Kumar would take girls, who were aged between 15 to 17, to the attic and would harass them after playing adult content.

This issue came to light during a recent campaign undertaken by the authorities to ensure the safety of inmates in the district. During the "Big Word", a two-day drive to ensure safety for the 32 shelter homes in the district, few teenagers revealed the alleged sexual abuse in writing.

The rescued children have been shifted to a government facility, and further probe is on in the case, the police added.