Kannur: By handing down a total of 60 years of rigorous imprisonment to former priest Robin Vadakkumcherry for raping and impregnating a minor girl in the infamous Kottiyoor case, the criminal justice system has sent out a strong message that those taking advantage of minors in heinous ways would be severely punished.
The court has also stated that criminal proceedings must be initiated against the parents of the minor mother for turning hostile during the trial.
The convict will have to undergo only 20 years of imprisonment as the sentences in three difference offences in the single trial shall run concurrently. The fine amount of Rs 3 lakh should be paid to the victim.
Ever since the matter came to light, there had been an alleged attempt to cover up the whole incident and bail out the priest. The girl’s father, who belongs to an economically backward family, was also promised Rs 10 lakh to own up the crime. The victim and her mother had also turned hostile, claiming that she was above 18 at the time of the incident, which raised questions over the validity of trying the case in a POCSO special court.
The 'age challenge'
The greatest challenge for the prosecution was to prove the age of the victim.
Though the investigators attempted to recover medical records from the hospital where she gave birth to a baby on February 17, 2017, the hospital authorities informed them that the registry was not available.
However, the court based its verdict on the live birth certificate of the victim obtained from the local body concerned, which gave her year of birth as 1999. It helped the prosecution to argue that she was a minor in 2016 when the rape had occurred.
A DNA test followed, which confirmed that Robin is the biological father of the child. In the meantime, the accused and the victim filed a petition seeking conduct of scientific tests to ascertain the latter’s age, but the court dismissed their plea.
Taking into account the physical and mental torture and the trauma undergone by the victim, the court decided against initiating criminal proceedings against her for turning hostile in the case.
Robin pleads for mild punishment
Prior to the pronouncement of the sentence, the accused pleaded for relaxing the punishment saying that the victim and the child were dependent on him. The court responded that life imprisonment was not awarded to him only because it was considerate and sympathetic towards the child. The judge further observed that the gravity of the offence and its impact on the victim was shocking.
The ruling, based on scientific evidence, found only the prime accused guilty of the crime.
The police had arraigned nine persons – including five nuns and an administrator – who were accused of covering up the incident. The Supreme Court had earlier quashed all charges against three staff members of Christuraj Hospital, Koothuparamba, where the victim gave birth to the child.
The remaining six others were also acquitted on Saturday for want of evidence. They were: second accused Thankamma alias Annamma, 54; sixth accused Sr Liz Maria, 35; seventh accused Sr Aneeta, 48; Sr Ophilia, 73, Superintendent, Holy infant Mary Orphanage, Vythiri; ninth accused and former chairman of the Wayanad District Child Welfare Committee (CWC) Fr Thomas Joseph Therakam, 68; and 10th accused and former member of the CWC Sr Betty Jose, 71.
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