A 61-year-old Islamic scholar who molested a minor boy who had gone to study the Quran was sentenced to 56 years of rigorous imprisonment and a fine of Rs 75,000. The court convicted Abdul Jabbar from Darussalam House near Pothancode in Thiruvananthapuram district, Kerala.
Thiruvananthapuram Fast Track Special Court (POCSO) judge R Rekha sentenced Jabbar to varying jail terms for several offences under the Protection of Children from Sexual Offences (POCSO) Act and the IPC. Since the sentences must be served concurrently and Jabbar’s maximum penalty is 20 years in jail, he will spend 20 years behind bars. R S Vijay Mohan, Special Public Prosecutor (SPP), stated.
Jabbar will undergo another year and seven months of rigorous imprisonment if the fine is not paid. The amount should be given to the child victim. The court said in its judgment that the accused who tortured the eleven-year-old continuously did not deserve any mercy.
According to the prosecution, between October 2020 and January 2021, the then 11-year-old boy was sexually assaulted on several occasions when he went to the convict for religious classes. Did authorities fail to curb such sexual perverts even during the Covid period?
The abused child used to go to the house of the accused to study the Quran. At that time, after making the other children sit in the hall of the house to write/recite, Jabbar would take the minor to another room. This was where the paedophile sexually abused the victim.
The prosecution case is that the child was tortured continuously. Jabbar showed the minor pornographic videos on his mobile phone. The child protested many times, but the Quran teacher did not cooperate.
Jabbar threatened to kill the boy by drowning him in a nearby pond if he revealed the sexual abuse to anyone. This intimidation silenced the minor victim.
When the victim’s family insisted that he should take his younger brother to study the Quran at the accused’s house, the child disagreed. Then, when the family forced him to take his younger brother with him, the victim revealed the details of the abuse. Later, a complaint was lodged with the police.
