The Thalassery Protection of Children from Sexual Offences (POCSO) Special Court on Saturday sentenced former BJP local leader and school teacher K Padmarajan to life imprisonment till death for the sexual abuse of a 10-year-old student.
The court also imposed a fine of ₹2 lakh on him. He was awarded a total of 40 years of imprisonment—20 years each for two separate POCSO offences—with the sentences to run concurrently. His bail was revoked and he was shifted to the Thalassery sub-jail.
The court had earlier found Padmarajan guilty of serious offences under the POCSO Act and described his actions as a “serious sexual assault committed by abusing the trust of the student.”
The charges arose from an incident on March 17, 2020, when Padmarajan, then a teacher at Palathai School, was accused of assaulting a young girl in the school washroom. The Panur police registered a case after a complaint was filed by the victim’s mother.
According to the police chargesheet, Padmarajan sexually assaulted the girl during school hours, leading to his arrest and subsequent trial in the fast-track court.
Public Prosecutor K. Ajith Kumar welcomed the verdict. “The court today has announced its verdict of life imprisonment for the accused. I am very happy as a prosecutor,” he said.
Padmarajan’s counsel, P. Premarajan, disputed the charges and questioned the legitimacy of the case.
In court, Premarajan argued, “This case was fabricated by Islamic organisations. They fabricated evidence against the teacher, who was a BJP sympathiser and the Panchayat Committee President of the BJP at the time. The main reason was a Facebook post by him in support of the Citizenship Amendment Act (CAA), and two months later, a false case was fabricated against him.”
The case has been marked by debates over changes in investigating officers and public uncertainty regarding the seriousness of the inquiry.