The number of arrests in the serial sexual abuse of an 18 year old woman in Pathanamthitta of Kerala has risen to 56 by January 17. Out of the 59 men accused of abusing the woman over the past five years, the police have nabbed 56 people including four minors, in one week. Twenty nine cases have been registered in four police stations of Pathanamthitta district under sections including those of the Protection of Children from Sexual Offences (POCSO) Act and the Scheduled Caste and Scheduled Tribe (Prevention of Atrocities) Act. Most of the police cases have been registered at the Elavumthitta and Pathanamthitta stations.
News of the abuse broke out on January 10, after the teen survivor revealed her experience to the Child Welfare Committee of Pathanamthitta. She alleged that over 60 men had sexually abused her from the time she was 13 years old. The survivor first spoke to a counsellor after an awareness campaign was held at her college. She hailed from a Dalit settlement near Elavumthitta, a village in Pathanamthitta, from where the first arrests of the accused were also made. She was allegedly abused first by her boyfriend, Subin, who is several years her senior and had already been an adult five years ago. Subin has allegedly shot videos and images of her and threatened her into meeting his friend. The survivor’s contact details were since shared with multiple people who began approaching her through different platforms, including Instagram.
Most of the accused are in the 20 to 40 age group, and are daily wage labourers, drivers, fisher folk and students. The survivor’s parents are also daily wage workers. Having been active in sports, the survivor would be away from home a lot, leaving the parents without a clue of the abuse that she had been through.
Presently, the survivor is undergoing counselling at a centre arranged by the CWC.
