Pollachi Case: All nine accused found guilty; sentenced to life imprisonment
A sessions court in Coimbatore, Tamil Nadu, found all nine accused guilty of gang rape and repeated rape in the 2019 Pollachi sexual assault and extortion case.
Aadrika Tayal 
New Delhi (India) May 14: A court has found nine men guilty six years after they were charged with sexually abusing and extorting many women in Pollachi, Tamil Nadu. The men were convicted of gang rape and repeated rape by Sessions Court Judge R Nandhini Devi.
The judge ordered life sentences for all nine convicts - Sabarirajan alias Rishwanth, 32, Thirunavukarasu, 34, T Vasantha Kumar, 30, M Sathish, 33, R Mani alias Manivannan, P Babu, 33, Haron Paul, 32, Arulanantham, 39, and Arun Kumar, 33. They were kept in the Salem Central Prison after their arrest in 2019.
The public prosecutor in the case said, "The survivors' testimonies, supported by digital proof, were pivotal. No witnesses turned hostile, and the Witness Protection Act ensured their identities and safety."
When the Pollachi case came to light in 2019, it revealed a disturbing pattern of abuse involving at least eight women, including a college student. Between 2016 and 2018, the survivors were recorded, sexually assaulted, and blackmailed for money and sexual favors.
Harsh sections of the Indian Penal Code (IPC), such as rape, gangrape, raping the same victim more than once, criminal conspiracy, sexual harassment, and blackmail, were used to charge nine people.
A pattern of systematic abuse was discovered during the investigation, and the survivors said that if they didn't comply, the accused would release their films to their families and communities.
A group of nine sexual criminals based in Pollachi targeted a number of women from lower socioeconomic backgrounds between 2016 and 2018, but the bravery and determination of a 19-year-old college student exposed them.
V. Surendra Mohan, the public prosecutor of the case said, “The accused followed the modus operandi of sexually assaulting the victims and filming the act for blackmail. The girl told her family members about the incident after some days, following which a complaint was lodged at the Pollachi East police station on February 24, 2019, which exposed the gang.”
In one of the cases, one of the accused sexually assaulted the victim in her home and recorded a video. He later used the video to blackmail her for favors.
Aadrika Tayal
