MALAPPURAM: A 47-year-old man was arrested for sexually abusing his four minor daughters at Valanchery near here on Saturday. According to the police, the man abused his daughters aged 17, 15, 13 and 10 — all studying in a convent school in the area in Classes XI, IX, VII and V.
The incident came to light when the younger daughter revealed the abuse to school authorities during a counselling session. She revealed to the school authorities that her father told her to come back home after school only if she is ready to be touched by her father. After knowing the situation of the girl, the school authorities subjected three sisters of the girl studying in the same school to counselling.
The sisters also revealed the sexual exploitation by the father to the teachers. The teachers later informed the Child Protection Unit members who later informed the police about the incident. The police said the man had been sexually abusing the children for the past several years. Valanchery CI T Manoharan said four cases were registered against the man based on the complaints from the four girls. The man, who hails from Thiruvananthapuram, has been living in Valanchery for the past several years. He was presented before the court and remanded in judicial custody. Cases on the rise earlier many child abuse cases involving close family members of the victim were reported from Malappuram district. In a recent child abuse case, a 12-year-old girl was raped by 30 men for many years. In the case, the father forced the girl to have relations with the men. The father also forced the child to take her nude photos and send it to the men.
According to police data, Malappuram district tops the list of districts in the total number of POCSO cases in the state. As many as 376 child abuse cases were registered in the district between January 1, 2019, and October 31, 2019. Thiruvananthapuram stands second with 359 cases. In 2018, a total of 410 POCSO cases were reported from Malappuram district. Following the rising number of child abuse cases in the district, rights activists had urged the state government to take stringent action to end the malaise. According to Aisha P Jamal, special public prosecutor, 832 cases under POCSO Act are pending trial in the Manjeri Sessions Court.