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 defendants, 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, have all been asked to serve life sentences by the prosecution. Since their arrest in the nationally publicized case in 2019, they have been housed at the Salem Central Prison.
Vigilance was heightened throughout the city when they were taken to the Coimbatore court this morning under strict police supervision. There was strict security at the court complex and other important sites.
During the trial, more than 200 documents and 400 pieces of technological evidence—including films of the assaults that had been forensically verified—were submitted. “The digital evidence that backed up the survivors’ statements was crucial. The public prosecutor stated that no witnesses were hostile and that their names and safety were protected by the Witness Protection Act.
But only eight survivors formally reported the atrocities they experienced, he said, highlighting the dread of social stigma and reprisals.
While applauding the convictions, women’s rights advocates called for a systematic implementation. A member of the Tamil Nadu Women’s Collective stated, “This verdict is a relief, but survivors need compensation, counseling, and government job assurances to rebuild their lives.”
When the Pollachi case came to light in 2019, it revealed a horrifying pattern of exploitation 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.
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Strict provisions 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 accuse nine individuals.
According to the authorities, the inmates recorded their sexual assaults and used the video to pressure the victims into continuing to be exploited.
In response to calls for an unbiased investigation, the case was first looked into by the Pollachi police before being sent to the Tamil Nadu Crime Branch-Criminal Investigation Department (CB-CID) and then to the Central Bureau of Investigation (CBI).
The survivors said that the accused threatened to release their footage to their families and communities if they didn’t comply, and the investigation revealed a pattern of systemic abuse.
As a litmus test for justice in situations of gender-based violence, especially those involving protracted coercion and institutional delays, the trial also attracted attention. Civil society organizations and campaigners for women’s rights kept a careful eye on the proceedings, highlighting the necessity of accountability in a situation where survivors frequently encounter stigma and procedural obstacles.
The then-ruling AIADMK had come under fire for allegedly trying to hide the crime and for submitting the FIR after the deadline. One of the accused was later expelled by the party after it refuted the claims.
