A Fast Track Mahila Court on Tuesday awarded 10 years’ rigorous imprisonment to Nirmala Devi, a suspended Assistant Professor of Devanga Arts College in Aruppukottai, in a case of attempted trafficking of college girls.
Judge T. Bagavathiammal had found Devi guilty on five counts on Monday, and had adjourned the case to Tuesday for pronouncing the sentence.
She awarded 10 years’ imprisonment each on two counts – for attempting to trafficking more than one person [Section 370 (3) of the Indian Penal Code], and for seduction of girls in custody [Section 9 of The Immoral Traffic (Prevention) Act, 1956].
The court also sentenced Devi to seven years in jail for trafficking of person [Section 370 (1) of the IPC], and five years for attempt to procure girls for the purpose of prostitution [Section 5 (1) (a) of The Immoral Traffic (Prevention) Act, 1956].
Further, finding her guilty under the provisions of the Information Technology Act, the court sentenced her to three years in jail.
“The court has ordered that all the sentences shall be served concurrently, and hence, she would have to serve a jail term of 10 years,” prosecution counsel Chandrasekar said.
Ms. Bagavathimmal also imposed a fine of ₹2.42 lakh on Devi.
The Crime Branch-Criminal Investigation Department (CB-CID) had probed the case registered by the Aruppukottai Town police against Devi on charges of attempting to lure college girls into doing sexual favours for higher officials of the Madurai Kamaraj University in return for money and higher marks.
Though the CB-CID had arrested an Assistant Professor of the Madurai Kamaraj University, V. Murugan, and a research scholar, S. Karuppasamy, in connection with the case, the court acquitted them after the prosecution witnesses turned hostile.
The prosecution would go for an appeal against the acquittal of the two accused, Mr. Chandrasekar said.
Counsel for Nirmala Devi, K. Suresh Napolean, had urged the court to show leniency towards the accused as she was a mother of two children. However, the prosecution objected to it, saying no mercy should be shown to the accused in such heinous crimes. Only stringent punishment would serve as a deterrent against such crimes, he said.
