KOZHIKODE: Former teacher Sasi Kumar KV of St Gemma’s Higher Secondary School, Malappuram, arrested on charges of sexually abusing students was on Wednesday allowed bail by the Manjeri Pocso court. The court’s decision to grant bail to the accused came 25 days after he was taken into custody. However, Sasikumar will have to remain in jail under IPC Section 354 (use of criminal force on any woman, with the intention of outraging her modesty) which was also slapped on him.
He was arrested in connection with two Pocso cases filed by his former students. The accused, who is also a CPM leader and former civic councillor, was accused of abusing his Upper Primary School students for around 30 years. Kumar had resigned as councilor after the case was registered.
Police not acting, allege alumni
The alumni association of the school, which had exposed the issue, blasted the police for not including the school management among the accused. “Many parents had reported the sexual abuse incidents to the school management as well as its corporate management in 2014 and 2019. But, they did not forward the complaint to the police which is mandatory under Pocso. The police should also register a case against the school for the serious negligence. But, the police are not acting,” said advocate Beena Pillai, an alumnus, who, however, was not taught by Sasi Kumar. Also, the police had not registered a case in the mass petition submitted by 50 former students.
Meanwhile, neither district police chief Sujith S Das nor police inspector Joby Thomas responded to the allegations levelled against the police. Kumar’s shocking past -- he worked at the school for 38 long years-- would have remained under wraps if he had not made a Facebook post on the grand farewell accorded to him by the school.
An FB post from a former student of his, who had come across Kumar’s self-laudatory post, literally opened the floodgates with several former students coming out with their harrowing experiences. Not only that, 50 of them under the alumni of St Gemma’s school forum lodged a complaint with Malappuram police on May 7.