In a shocking turn of events in the Walayar rape case, in which two minor girls committed suicide after being sexually exploited, the Central Bureau of Investigation (CBI) has named the mother and the stepfather of the girls as accused in all 11 cases filed in connection with the incident.
As per reports, the CBI court accepted the six charge sheets already filed against the parents on Wednesday, March 5. The six charge sheets were submitted by the CBI against the parents of the victims aged 13 and 9, on the charges of abetting repeated sexual abuse.
The parents will also be co-accused in two other cases before the Juvenile Justice Board in Palakkad in which a minor is also accused. CBI counsel, Pious Mathew, said that strong evidence was found against the mother and the stepfather of the victims which led to their indictment in the cases. He confirmed that the court accepted the charge sheets against the parents and the case is set to be heard on March 25. He added that the parents are accused in three more cases which makes the total number of cases 11. A report pending before the Juvenile Justice Board, suggesting the indictment of the mother and the stepfather in the case, has also been filed.
The CBI investigation was ordered in the case by a sessions court in August 2022 on the appeal of the state government after a POCSO court acquitted four accused citing lack of evidence in 2019. The stepfather and the mother were witnesses in the case when the investigation was being carried out by the police. Last year, the case was transferred from the POCSO court in Palakkad to the POCSO court in Ernakulam by the Kerala High Court at the request of the CBI.
In the cases filed in connection with the death of the elder girl, Valiya Madhu from Attappallam, Shibu from Rajakkad in Idukki, Kutti Madhu from Pampampallam, and a 16-year-old minor boy have been accused. The investigation into the younger girl’s death is ongoing and the 16-year-old boy and Valiya Madhu have been accused in cases connected to her death.
What does the charge sheet say
The charge sheet reportedly mentioned that the stepfather witnessed one of the girls getting sexually abused by accused V Madhu. “The father had witnessed one of the accused named V Madhu, sexually abusing the girl…He used to consume liquor with one of the accused Kutti Madhu at their home even after the eldest daughter attained puberty. The father allowed Kutti Madhu to sleep at the house, allowing him to ill-treat the daughter,” the charge sheet stated.
It further stated that the mother had sexual intercourse with one accused in the presence of her children. She allegedly allowed the abuse of her younger daughter and was aware of her elder daughter’s rape. The report says that the parents hosted one accused at their house, served him liquor, and even made arrangements for him to have sexual intercourse with their children. They also sent their daughters to his house.
The charge sheet revealed that in April 2016, the mother saw one accused sexually assault her elder daughter. Two weeks later, the father also witnessed the sexual abuse of the victims. Neither of the parents ever made an effort to stop the abuse or file a complaint against the accused. The CBI said that the girls were subjected to sexual abuse because of the willful negligence of their parents.
What was the Walayar case
In a tragic turn of events, two minor Dalit sisters, aged 9 and 13, were found hanging in their house in the Attappallam area of Walayar, Kerala, 2 months apart. The elder sister was found hanging on January 13, 2017, and the younger one was found hanging on March 4, 2017. The victims belonged to the Scheduled caste community.
Their autopsy reports revealed that the girls were subjected to sexual assault and the younger one was possibly a victim of homicidal hanging. However, the police did not investigate the homicide angle and submitted an investigation report against the four accused-V Madhu, M Madhu, Shibu, and Pradeep Kumar for abetment of suicide, rape, and unnatural sex under the Indian Penal Code and penetrative sexual assault under the POCSO Act. A juvenile was also accused whose case was presented before the Juvenile Justice Board.
Accused Pradeep Kumar was acquitted by the Special POCSO court in September 2019. Subsequently, the court acquitted the other three accused V Madhu, Shibu and M Madhu citing lack of evidence. The acquittal triggered massive protests which led to the Kerala High Court transferring the case to CBI.
