The Kerala High Court on Friday upheld the life imprisonment awarded by a Sessions Court to Dharmarajan, the prime accused in the Suryanelli case while modifying the sentence of 23 others.
The Division Bench judgment overturned the findings of another Bench of the same High Court, delivered a couple of years ago, which let off the prisoners and said there was no rape involved.
Upholding the sentence awarded by the Sessions Court, Kottayam, the Bench observed that it cannot think of the victim as a ‘deviant’ girl, who could have escaped during her captivity. The maximum sentence awarded to others was 10 years for gangrape and criminal conspiracy.
The Division Bench comprising Justice K T Sankaran and Justice M L Joseph Francis issued the order on a set of appeals filed by the accused.
On January 31, 2013, the Supreme Court had set aside the the 2005 judgment of the High Court acquitting all, except the prime accused Dharmarajan, and directed them to hear the appeal afresh. This hearing lasted for almost one year.
The Court directed the Sessions Court to execute the modified sentence and issue warrants against the accused. The fine realised should be paid to the victim, it said.
The Court, however, acquitted seven accused - Antony alias Baji, Rajagopalan Nair alias Raja, Joseph alias Baby, Mary alias Ammini, Vilasini, George alias George Kutty and Mohanan alias Ayyavu.
The girl who was aged only sixteen years and four months at the time, was subjected to sexual abuse, rape and gangrape by more than 40 persons at different places in the state and in Tamil Nadu. The prosecution case was that Dharmarajan, first accused Raju and second accused Usha hatched a conspiracy to kidnap the girl, subject her to sexual abuse and provide her to others.
After kidnapping the victim, Dharmarajan took her to a lodge at Mundakayam and raped her. Later, the girl was gangraped by several persons inside and outside the state on various days from January 16, 1996 to February 26, 1996. She was sexually abused by 41 people for a period of 40 days.
Two of the accused - Reji and Sree Kumar - committed suicide and three others - Mathew Joseph, Vijaya Kumar and Muhammed Yousuf died while the appeals were pending.
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