KOCHI: A mother from Thiruvananthapuram had high hopes for her daughter’s cricket career when she enrolled her for the Kerala Cricket Association’s coaching programme. However, the dream was shattered when the coach sexually abused the daughter, forcing her to give up the game.
Following the incident, the victim moved to Bengaluru. The mother shared the traumatic experience in a petition to the Kerala High Court, seeking a detailed investigation.
According to the petition, her daughter started to display unusual behaviour in 2019 and lost interest in cricket, but the reason came to light only recently. The child revealed the abuse during counselling sessions.
As it turned out, the accused had a history of sexual crimes. Manu, who was the official cricket coach of the Thiruvananthapuram District Cricket Academy, has been slapped with seven Pocso cases. The parents of the others victims, who are also party to the petition, said the accused took all the decisions on participation in tournaments and selecting players. The coach accompanied players for various tournaments and arranged for their travel and stay.
The 47-year-old mother approached Cantonment police on June 8. The accused was arrested after an investigation.
It was after news of the arrest emerged that the other parents found courage to come forward and file complaints. The statements of the victims revealed sexual abuse, sexual harassment, and other criminal acts that they had to endure during coaching and outstation tournaments.
The parents suspect the accused to be part of a criminal gang that took pictures and videos of the abuse and uploaded them on online platforms for monetary gain. The gang is also believed to have taken nude photographs of survivors.
Despite demanding an effective investigation, the probe has not progressed effectively, the parents alleged. They requested the court to order an investigation by state cyber crime and cyber dome authorities to unearth whether pornographic content was captured/created and uploaded by the accused and his accomplices on websites and misused for other illegal purposes.