Kerala Court sentences tuition teacher to 111 years in prison for raping minor student

THIRUVANANTHAPURAM: A special fast-track court here on Tuesday sentenced a tuition teacher to 111 years of rigorous imprisonment and a fine of Rs 1.05 lakh for raping a plus-one student after luring her five years ago. If the fine remains unpaid, the convict, Manoj, 44, will face an additional year of imprisonment.

Manoj's wife took her own life upon learning of her husband's abuse of the minor girl. In the ruling, Judge R Rekha stated that Manoj, who was also supposed to be the child's guardian, had committed a crime that warranted no mercy.

The incident occurred on July 2, 2019. According to the prosecution, the accused, a government employee, conducted tuition classes at his residence. He summoned the child for a special class and subsequently abused her, also taking photos of the abuse on his mobile phone. Following the incident, the child became fearful and stopped attending tuition classes.

The accused then disseminated photos of the incident. Learning about the incident, the child's family lodged a complaint at the Fort Police Station. Upon the accused's arrest, his phone was seized and sent for forensic examination, revealing photos of the child being abused.

Manoj claimed to have been at the office on the day of the incident, producing registered leave records with signatures. However, call records from the accused's phone, presented by the prosecution, revealed that Manoj was near the tuition centre on the day of the incident.

Special Public Prosecutor R S Vijay Mohan and R V Akhilesh appeared for the prosecution.