Kerala couple sentenced 180 years for sexual assault of daughter

Kerala: A couple in Kerala’s Manjeri area of Malappuram district were sentenced to 180 years of imprisonment each for repeated sexual assaultof a minor girl by a Special Protection Of Children from Sexual Offences (POCSO) court on Tuesday, November 4.

The couple was also fined Rs 11.75 lakh each, and failure to pay would result in an additional prison sentence of 20 years.

“Today, the court has convicted both of the accused – 180 years of rigourous imprisonment and ₹11.75 lakh,” Special Public Prosecutor Somasundaram was quoted by ANI.

The case was registered against the victim’s mother and her lover, who had eloped with the minor to Malappuram. The crime spanned the period from 2019 to 2021.

“Originally living in Thiruvananthapuram, the mother eloped with her lover and her 11-year-old daughter to Malappuram, where they resided in a rented cottage. There, with the aid and help of the mother, her lover sexually assaulted the little girl for two years, from 2019-2021. He not only raped her, but also forced her into oral sex,” the prosecutor said.

Prosecution’s statement

Special POCSO court judge Ashraf AM gave the verdict, citing various sections of the Indian Penal Code (IPC), the Juvenile Justice Act, and the POCSOAct.

According to the prosecution, the victim’s stepfather used intimidation tactics by claiming a “hidden camera” had been implanted in her head and that any effort to expose the abuse would be discovered.

The prosecution further said that the prime accused had repeatedly assaulted the minor for two years at rented houses in Anamangad and Vallikapatta.

Meanwhile, the mother, who is the second accused in the case, was charged with aiding, abetting, and encouraging the assault. She had left her husband and started living with her lover in 2019, when the abuse began.

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The prosecutor stated, “The two accused also committed sexual intercourse in the presence of the girl. They committed offences as per the POCSO Act, as well as the Juvenile Justice Act. The court has now convicted both the accused to 180 years of rigorous imprisonment as well as Rs 11.75 lakh as fine.”

The money submitted to the court will be given to the victim.

“They have been sent to 180 years of rigorous imprisonment, but they have to remain in jail for 40 years,” the prosecutor added.

The two accused have been ordered to be moved to Tavanur Jail to serve their sentence.

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