Four people, including a Sunday school teacher, have been jailed for sexually assaulting a 14-year-old girl in Ernakulam. Additional Sessions POCSO Court Judge K Soman handed down the sentence.
Aneesha, who was teaching religious matters at the Sunday School, introduced the child to the other accused. Sunday schools are nothing but Christian education usually provided for children and young people who are part of the same church. Disguised as a ‘moral science’ class, some churches use Sunday schools to even trick ‘secular’ Hindus into sending their children.
The young victim was tortured and gang-raped several times by the convicts. They filmed the atrocities and used the images to threaten the victim and continue to rape the minor.
The convicts were identified as Arakkal Aneesha (28), Harshad Basil (24), Jibin (24) and Jones Mathew (24). Aneesha was sentenced to 32 years, Harshad Basil to 28 years, Jibin to 48 and Jones to 12. The court also ordered the accused to pay a fine of Rs 2 lakh each. Even though the sentences run simultaneously, these pedophiles will remain behind bars for a minimum of 12 years.
The court also ordered the state government to pay adequate compensation to the girl. The tragic incident took place in 2015.
