A day after the horrifying sexual abuse of a 10-year-old girl from Kerala at a cinema theatre in Malappuram was reported, the girl's mother was arrested on Sunday.
The arrest was made by a team of police headed by DySP Shaji. Confirming the arrest to TNM, DySP Shaji said that the girl's mother knew that her daughter was being sexually abused by 60-year-old Moideen Kutty.
The police have booked the girl's 35-year-old mother under section 364 (A) of IPC, along with relevant sections of POCSO and Juvenile Justice (JJ) Act.
She was taken into custody after CCTV visuals from the theatre showed that Moideen Kutty was engaged in a sexual act with the girl's mother, while also sexually abusing the minor child. They were seated on the front row seats and Moideen abused the child throughout the show.
According to the police, the man and the woman were in a relationship. She had taken the child to the theatre and let him sit in the middle.
The incident has sent shockwaves across the state after it was revealed that the Changarankulam police delayed taking action against Moideen for weeks, despite Childline officials handing over the abuse visuals to the police.
The crime, that could have gone unreported. However, it came to the fore after the act was caught on CCTV inside the theatre. The staff, who acted diligently, took note of Moideen's vehicle number, which helped in identifying him. They subsequently approached the Childline.
The state police, which is incidentally facing severe backlash in the backdrop of the custodial death of an Ernakulam native, came under further ire after it was revealed that they refused to take action against Moideen, who is repeatedly a wealthy businessman.
The minor girl has been shifted to a Nirbhaya home, Childline officials said. Her statement will be recorded soon.