Pollachi Sexual Abuse Case

What is the Pollachi sexual abuse and extortion case: A detailed explainer

 Ragamalika Karthikeyan

• Wednesday, March 13, 2019 - 18:20

 The Pollachi case has taken TN – and the rest of India – by shock. TNM has put together all the verified information that is available so far.

On February 12 this year, Priya (name changed), a 19-year-old college student in Pollachi, was called by her acquaintance, Sabarirajan, who told her that he wanted to discuss something important with her alone. Sabarirajan, who also goes by the name Riswandh, asked Priya to meet him at a bus stop in Pollachi, and when Priya reached there in the afternoon, Sabarirajan was standing near a car along with his friend Thirunavukkarasu, another acquaintance of Priya. The duo asked her to get into the car with them, and said they would talk on the way. While Thirunavukkarasu started the car, Sabarirajan was sitting in the back seat with Priya. And suddenly, two more men – Sathish and Vasanthkumar – got in. The four of them forcefully disrobed Priya and shot a video, and snatched a gold chain she was wearing. They threatened her that if she did not do as they said, and provide them with sexual favours and money when they demanded it, they would upload the video on the internet. When she screamed and cried, they left her in the middle of the road and drove away.

Upset and scared, Priya did not reveal the incident to her family. But when the men blackmailed her and tried to extort money from her multiple times, Priya decided to take her family into confidence.

Her brother Subhash (name changed) then tracked down Thirunavukkarasu and Sabarirajan, beat them up, and unearthed what is perhaps an elaborate and scary sexual violence and extortion racket. Subhash and his friends got hold of Thirunavukkarasu and Sabarirajan’s cell phones, which contained videos of at least three other women that the men may have blackmailed. The family submitted this to the Pollachi police, along with a complaint of sexual harassment and robbery.

The police have filed an FIR on February 24 against Sabarirajan, Thirunavukkarasu, Sathish and Vasanthkumar under sections 354A (sexual harassment), 354B (assault or use of criminal force against woman with intent to disrobe), and 392 (robbery) of the IPC; section 66E of the IT Act (violation of privacy); and section 4 of the Tamil Nadu Prohibition of Sexual Harassment of Women Act (sexual harassment).

The rape and extortion racket

Priya’s ordeal and the phones collected from the four accused has revealed a massive racket run by the four men, and allegedly several other men – and the police is looking into who the perpetrators of these crimes are. They have asked other victims to come forward with their experiences with these men.

TNM has learned some details of the modus operandi of these men was. One of them – usually Sabarirajan alias Riswandh – would lure women to a secluded house or hotel, and either force himself on them or convince them to have sex.

All the while, his accomplices – hidden from view – would shoot the act on a camera.

If it was a sexual assault, one of the accomplices would barge in and pretend to be a saviour, while the other men continued to shoot the video. At least one such video of a young woman who was sexually assaulted by Riswandh (alias Sabarirajan) has been released by a Tamil magazine. TNM will not share the video, or other videos that are circulating.

In the videos that the men have shot, the young women can be heard naming Riswandh (alias Sabarirajan) multiple times. In one of these videos, Thirunavukkarasu can be clearly seen.

Thirunavukkarasu

In another video, Sathish can be seen in a sexual act, and he has left the door open for his friends to shoot the act.

In another video, Riswandh shoots a woman and continuously asks her whether she would meet him the next day. The police say such videos were used to blackmail for money or sexual favours.

If the sex was consensual, the men would threaten to upload the videos on the internet or circulate them through WhatsApp, unless the women gave them sexual favours, along with money and other valuables. In all the videos, it is clear that the door of the room was kept open so other members of the gang could take pictures and shoot videos.

How many victims?

The lawyer of the survivor told TNM that they have recovered three videos from the cell phones they seized from two of the men. While there are media reports and estimates that there are anywhere between 50 and 200 victims of this racket, there is no confirmation of any such number so far. However, at least six women are there in the videos that have leaked now, only Forensic department can recover the rest.

In an audio message that one of the accused Thirunavukkarasu released, he says that a false case has been foisted on him – but also suggests that ‘99 other women’ were willing participants.

The case of assault of victim’s brother

Priya and her family filed a complaint and the police registered an FIR on February 24, 2019. On February 25, Subhash was assaulted by four men – allegedly friends of Thirunavukkarasu and Sabarirajan. Senthil, Babu, Mani and Vasanthkumar beat up Subhash for filing a complaint against Thirunavukkarasu, and allegedly threatened that if anything were to happen to these men, Subhash will not be alive.

An FIR was registered by the Pollachi police in this case, under section 341, 294(b), 323, 324, and 506(2) of the IPC.

The Pollachi police added the name of a fifth person – ‘Bar’ Nagaraj, an AIADMK functionary who has now been expelled by the party – in the FIR.

All five men are now out on bail.

Who are the four accused

Sabarirajan alias Riswandh is a 25-year-old civil engineer in Pollachi. Thirunavukkarasu is a 26-year-old financier. Vasanthakumar works for Thirunavukkarasu to collect money from clients. Sathish is the owner of a readymade garments shop in Pollachi.

Politics over sexual violence

While the case was registered in late February, and TNM reported about the arrests on February 27, the incident has become politicised in the last few days.

The AIADMK has been criticised for the alleged involvement of Nagaraj in the saga, with some media reports suggesting that the rot runs higher up in the party. Tamil Magazine Nakkheeran’s editor Nakkheeran Gopal, in a video, alleged the involvement of Tamil Nadu Deputy Speaker Pollachi Jayaraman’s sons in the sexual abuse and extortion racket. However, Nakkheeran has not given any evidence of their involvement, or how they are allegedly linked to the accused in the case.

While Jayaraman himself has denied allegations, the survivor, Priya, and her brother Subhash have released statements where they said that it was Jayaraman who in fact has supported them from the beginning. In an audio statement, Priya said that her family approached Jayaraman through a family friend, and he has been helpful with filing the complaint and taking the case forward.

Subhash meanwhile released a video statement where his face is not visible, where he has linked the politicisation of the case with the announcement of Lok Sabha election dates.

Meanwhile, opposition party DMK held a rally in Pollachi on Tuesday demanding action against the accused. Speaking at the rally, DMK MP Kanimozhi said, “Many of them are saying we are politicising the issue. Nobody wants to politicise this. But if the government acts only after the matter becomes politicised, then what else can be done?”

Revealing identity of victim, circulating videos

While the survivor and her family have maintained that the police is helping them in the case, Pollachi Superintendent of Police Pandiarajan revealed the survivor’s name in a press meet, against every law to protect the identity of the victim.

“The name of the survivor in this case was revealed only to silence the other women and prevent them from coming out in the open and complaining,” Kanimozhi alleged at the DMK rally on Tuesday.

Meanwhile, several videos of victims are doing the rounds on WhatsApp, with no consideration for the victims’ consent or mental health. These videos were allegedly on the phones seized from the four accused – two of the phones were retrieved by the survivor’s brother while the other two were seized by the police.

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Polachi sexual assault case: Goondas Act slapped on four accused 

 The four accused -- Thirunavukkarasu, Sathish, Sabarirajan and Vasanthakumar are in judicial custody now. 

 Tuesday, March 12, 2019 - 11:44 

 

The police have slapped the provisions of the Goondas Act on the four accused who have been arrested in connection with the Pollachi sexual assault case. Just a day earlier, the Pollachi Magistrate Court had extended the remand for three of the four accused by 15 days.

The police action is in keeping with their earlier assertion that the four men -- Thirunavukkarasu, Sathish, Sabarirajan and Vasanthakumar -- had sexually assaulted and extorted other women. According to the police, their modus operandi involved befriending college-going girls online, filming them after they met them in person, and blackmailing them later with the videos for money.

The Tamil Nadu Prevention of Dangerous Activities of Bootleggers, Drug Offenders, Forest Offenders, Goondas, Immoral Traffic Offenders, Slum Grabbers and Video Pirates Act, 1982 or the Goondas Act defines a goonda as “a member of or leader of a gang, habitually commits, or attempts to commit or abets the commission of offences.”

Under the Goondas Act, a person may be detained without bail for a period that may extend up to one year. In 2011, the Madras High Court held that a single case was enough to detain a person under the Goondas Act.

It may be recalled that the Tamil Nadu police also slapped the Goondas Act on 17 accused in the rape of a 11-year-old child in Chennai last year.

Background

On February 24, a Pollachi-based woman registered a complaint with a local police station, alleging that four men -- Thirunavukkarasu, Sathish, Sabarirajan and Vasanthakumar -- sexually assaulted her in a car under the pretext of a friendly meeting on February 12. Police confirmed that the perpetrators of the crime shot videos of the girl, using it later to extort money from the survivor. While Sabarirajan, Vasanthakumar and Sathish were arrested on February 24, Thirunavukkarasu was apprehended on March 5.

 Soon after the survivor narrated her ordeal to her family, her brother Subhash confronted the men about the incident. The confrontation soon escalated to a physical altercation where Subhash was assaulted by four men.

According to the police, AIADMK functionary A Nagaraj came to the defence of Thirunavukkarasu after the confrontation, threatening and assaulting Subhash. Subhash lodged a complaint with the police. While the initial FIR did not mention him, Nagaraj's name was later added.

Nirmala Devi, accused in sex for cash scandal, granted bail by Madras HC 

 Tuesday, March 12, 2019 - 14:34
 
Nirmala Devi, a former Assistant Professor in an arts college in Aruppukkottai was arrested in April 2018 for trying to lure girl students to provide sexual favours to ‘higher officials’ of Madurai Kamaraj University.

Nirmala Devi, the main accused in the sex for cash scandal, was granted bail by the Madurai bench of the Madras High Court on Tuesday. This comes more than a week after the Tamil Nadu government had told the High Court that it had no objection to Nirmala Devi being granted bail. Justice Dhandapani had granted bail observing that the investigation is complete, the chargesheet has also been also filed and government has no objection. The state government had, however, submitted that Nirmala Devi should not speak to the media while she is out on bail. This submission has been accepted by the court.

On April 16, 2018, Nirmala Devi, a former Assistant Professor in an arts college in Aruppukkottai, was arrested for trying to lure girl students to provide sexual favours to ‘higher officials’ of Madurai Kamaraj University (MKU) in exchange for money, grades and career opportunities. In the 19-minute long audio clip, Nirmala Devi can allegedly be heard telling four students of the college about ‘opportunities’ that await them if they agree to do an ‘assignment’ she was offering. She promised them marks, academic prospects and money if they took up her offer.

Earlier this year, the court had ordered an interim stay on the trial based on a chargesheet filed by the CB-CID, based on a petition filed by Suganthi, the General Secretary of All India Democratic Women’s Association (AIDWA). Suganthi had alleged that the investigators had not pursued leads on purpose to unravel who the big names behind the racket were.

She alleged that the CB- CID had limited the case to three people- Nirmala Devi, Assistant Professor V Murugan and former Research Scholar Karuppasamy. She had stated that CB CID has deliberately not questioned or revealed the names of people for whom Nirmala Devi was allegedly soliciting sexual favours from students.

During the hearing last week, the court had asked the TN government if Nirmala Devi’s life was in danger and the government had said there was no danger.

Murugan and Karuppasamy, were granted bail by the Supreme Court. However, Nirmala Devi’s bail application has been rejected multiple times by various courts.

Bengaluru: Woman tells how Ola failed her after driver misbehaved

Written by
Shalini Ojha



Taxi aggregators need to get serious about women's safety, a woman's journey in Ola has shown once again.

Not only is it important that Ola fixes its emergency button, but it should also do a thorough screening of its drivers, said Akanksha Hazari, who had an ugly experience on December 10.

Hazari, who is the CEO of m.Paani, narrated her ordeal on Twitter.
 
In context 

Woman recalls horrifying Ola trip in Bengaluru



What happened
She booked a cab from Bengaluru airport, driver took detour

Hazari revealed on the night of December 10 at 11:31 PM, she boarded a cab from Bengaluru Airport to the city.

The driver didn't follow the route the app showed and took his own path, saying he doesn't have change for a toll. He turned the cab around and sensing trouble Hazari asked him to follow the prescribed path.

He didn't.

Aggression 

When she told him to turn around, he misbehaved

Not only did the driver refuse to follow the route, but he also asked Hazari to leave the cab. The road was secluded and barring few men, no one was seen around.

Hazari immediately pressed the app's emergency button and got a call. The executive spoke to the driver and assured her the ride will be tracked.

She felt relieved but things got ugly.

Fear 

Driver kept making calls, spoke in Kannada

Few minutes after the call, the driver called someone from his phone. Hazari asked him not to do that.

She wrote, "Because like every woman I was wary of who he could call to our location at this time of night. He spoke in Kannada so I couldn't understand the conversations."

Then he turned the engine off and continued to make calls.

Details 

Helpless Hazari dialed emergency again, nothing happened

Hazari said her phone's battery was dying and she didn't know what to do. She was also wondering about the safety executive who said her ride would be tracked.

"I immediately start to press on the emergency button again. 1..2...3...5...10 times, no callback," she wrote.

She called the police too and gave them the registration number of the vehicle.

Second call 

She had to call service center again, explain everything

A crying Hazari then called the service center again, and explained everything, again. She said her call was referred to another safety executive.

He spoke to the driver and directed him to drop her safely. Hazari was asked to keep the driver's phone to ensure he doesn't make further calls.

She reached her destination and paid the money, despite the horrendous experience.

Questions 

Upset with the experience, Hazari tweets about it

In multiple tweets, Hazari explained to Ola how they failed her. She asked why was the driver given this job and why was he continuing.

She also slammed the company for charging her money and not taking action despite promising to do so.

Hazari questioned why did the first safety executive didn't track the ride and why the emergency button didn't work.

Her experience was terrifying. Read about it here

Meanwhile, here's what Ola has to say

"We deeply regret the experience that the customer had to go through. The driver in question had been off-roaded immediately, and has been blacklisted from the Ola platform. We have extended support to the police in sharing all information to help them with the investigation," Ola's statement read.

This Chennai lad has not missed a single day of school or college for last 17 years

The journey was not easy for the MCA student at Measi Institute of Information and Technology.

CHENNAI: Reaching into his bag, GV Vinoth Kumar pulls out his 19 certificates from school and college, exuding pride. He spreads them out on the table. Each commends the 21-year-old for perfect attendance.

For the last 17 years, Vinoth has not missed a single day of school or college. Be it sickness or stormy weather, Vinoth has been determined to attend school and college, in order to set a record with the India Book of Records and Guinness Book of Records.

“After completing class 12, my school gave me a certificate for perfect attendance all through my schooling at Kalaimagal Vidyalaya Matriculation Higher Secondary School. That was when I got the idea to set a record because the current record is only 14 years, which is from LKG to class 12. I have completed three years of undergraduate without missing a class. It puts my current record at 17 years,” he says. He hopes to complete 19 years of perfect attendance.

The journey was not easy for the MCA student at Measi Institute of Information and Technology. “My parents motivated me a lot. They were the ones who told me that I should go to school every day. My father, who is also a teacher, used to drop me at school every day,” says Vinoth. But the situation became tricky when he was completing his undergraduate course in Computer Science at Hindustan College of Arts and Sciences. “I live in Royapuram. From there to Padur takes two and a half hours each way. I used to reach home at 7.30 pm every day. I took the bus for the first two years, and went on my bike during my third year,” he says.

In his third year of college, one day, Vinoth recorded a temperature of 102 degrees, but still drove to college and back. In 2015 and 2016, when the floods and Vardah cyclone hit the city, Vinoth remained focused on his goal, and still went to college every day until it was shut down, and was often the only student in his class. “Years of work isn’t worth being broken by just one day. Everyone accomplishes something in their lifetime. I wanted to accomplish something unique, and so I decided that I will set this record,” he says.

Of course, such dedication comes with a price. “I feel bad when my friends go on trips without me and come back with great stories. Once, they went to a forest near Thiruporur and cooked food out there. They made chicken 65, prawn 65, parotta and curry. However, they went again with me on an off day,” says Vinoth, smiling. He admits that although missing this quintessential part of college life is difficult, he keeps strong through the support of his friends and teachers, head of departments and principals.

Future plans

Vinoth hopes to clear the Tamil Nadu Public Service Commission exam and feels that his dedication towards the award will translate into an admirable work ethic.