This should be the last incident, says rape and murder victim’s mother

The other accused must be brought to justice soon, say AIDWA, Coimbatore MP

The sexual assault and murder of a seven-year-old girl in a village near Thudiyalur should be the last such incident, the victim's mother said on Friday, after the Special Court for POCSO Act Cases handed death sentence to the accused.

Speaking to the mediapersons, she thanked Judge S. Radhika for the death sentence for the accused, Santhosh Kumar. She also thanked members of the All India Democratic Women's Association (AIDWA) for their support. “Wherever such incidents happen, I will take part in the protests,” the mother said.

S. Rajalakshmi, AIDWA State Committee member, hailed the judgment holding the accused guilty of rape and murder, though she did not agree with the death penalty. “This is a rarest of rare case,” she said, hoping that it would not recur. Ms. Rajalakshmi said the second person allegedly involved in the case must be brought to justice at the earliest. She condemned the police for not taking adequate action to identify the second accused.

Senior lawyer P. Rathinam said the victim's mother filed a petition regarding the involvement of one more man only after she was assured by him and a group of lawyers that the main verdict would not be postponed. The investigation on the alleged involvement of the second person must be carried out by the Crime Branch–CID or any other competent authority, Mr. Rathinam said.

Addressing mediapersons, Special Public Prosecutor U. Sankaranarayanan expressed hope that sexual offences against children in Tamil Nadu would decrease following this verdict. “A fear must be instilled that death sentence is assured if [the case] goes to the court,” he said. When asked about the forensic report that found that one more person was involved in the crime, along with the accused, Mr. Sankaranarayanan said the police and the prosecution were not aware of the report when the trial began. “The report came much later,” he said. Police would take appropriate action as directed by the Special Court, he said.

Coimbatore MP P.R. Natarajan and DMDK founder Vijayakant welcomed the verdict. In a statement, Mr. Vijayakant said that the verdict would create “fear and shame” among the perpetrators. Mr. Natarajan urged the police to investigate and the bring to justice the second person alleged to have been involved in the crime.