Kasaragod police arrested four men on Monday in connection with the alleged rape of a 15-year-old girl. One of the accused, a 50-year-old man and former madrassa teacher, is the girl’s father who was released on bail after being previously arrested and accused of sexually assaulting minor boys who were his students.
According to police, the girl, a Class 10 student, has been sexually assaulted by multiple persons since 2018. The case came to light after the girl’s relative filed a complaint with the police last week. According to reports, the girl was impregnated after a recent sexual assault and underwent an abortion. The relatives then learnt about the alleged multiple sexual assaults against her.
The suvivor girl’s father, a Karnataka native, and three other men — Muhammed Ali, Riyas and a third accused — have been charged with various sections of the Protection of Children from Sexual Offences (POCSO) Act and Section 376 (Punishment for rape) of the Indian Penal Code.
“More people have assaulted the girl, but we have only received a few names. There is no proper address or any other details. We are also yet to verify if the father has sexually assaulted the girl, but he was aware of the other assaults. Investigation is going on, we are questioning people including the mother of the girl,” an official of Nileshwar police station told TNM.
According to the officer, one of the accused was a minor when the alleged crime took place, but recently turned 18.
The survivor girl is currently living with her uncle’s family. The Child Welfare Committee is trying to take custody of the girl to ensure her safety.
“Both the girl and the relative’s family are not allowing the CWC to shift the girl to a safe location. They are saying the girl is safe with them. But we do not feel so as this house is located right next to the girl's own house, where she had been assaulted before. We are therefore trying to make them understand about the threat she might have,” said Advocate PP Shyamala Devi, CWC member in Kasaragod.
Notably, the girl’s father has been previously accused of sexually assaulting four minor boys, who were students of the madrassa where he had been a teacher in Kasaragod district.
He was arrested in 2017 after families of the boys filed complaints. “There were four cases against him in this regard. But eventually, he went out on bail. The cases are under trial at present,” according to an official of Bekal police station, where the cases were registered.