The Kerala High Court recently upheld the conviction of a Madrasa teacher who was found guilty of sexually exploiting a minor boy in Thrissur. A Single Bench of Justice A Badharudeen passed the decision after the appeal of the accused Rasheed, who was convicted by a Special POCSO Court under Section 377 of the Indian Penal Code, Sections 4(2) r/w. 3(d), 6(1) r/w. 5(f), 5(m), 8 r/w. 7, 10 r/w. 9(o) and 9 (m) of the Protection of Children from Sexual Offences (POCSO) Act, and under Section 75 of the Juvenile Justice Act.
The court rejected the contention of the accused that the victim’s family falsely implicated him, as he belonged to a different sect of Muslims. “…sectarianism in the Muslim community led to registration of this crime also could not be found even remotely, as no convincing evidence was forthcoming in this regard,” the High Court noted in the judgment dated June 12, 2026.
The High Court refused to reduce the sentence granted by the trial court, saying that it was appropriate. “Coming to the sentence, since the minimum punishment for the offences punishable under Sections 5(f) and 5(m) as provided under Section 6(1) of the POCSO Act is imprisonment for a term not less than 20 years, which may extend up to imprisonment for life, no reduction in the sentence is possible, as the Special Court imposed only the minimum sentence. Therefore, the sentence is also confirmed,” the court said.
What was the case?
The incident happened on August 25, 2020, when the minor boy, who was 9 years old at the time, went to the room of the accused to clear some doubts ahead of an upcoming exam. The accused, who taught at Noorul Hidaya Madrasa in Mullassery, made the victim sit on his lap and kissed him. He slipped his hand under the victim’s bottom and grabbed his penis. The accused then inserted the penis of the minor victim into his mouth and sucked it. He asked the victim if he was enjoying it. He also told the minor boy not to tell anyone about the incident.
The panic-stricken victim pushed the accused and ran away. He narrated the entire incident to his mother, who informed him. Subsequently, an FIR was registered against the accused at the Pavaratty Police Station in Thrissur. The accused was tried and convicted.
