The woman who first filed a sexual assault complaint against Palakkad MLA Rahul Mamkootathil posted an emotional message on social media on Sunday, shortly after the Crime Branch arrested him in another rape case.
In her post, she thanked God for giving survivors the strength to speak out despite the “pain, judgment and betrayal” they had faced. “You saw what was done in the dark,” she wrote, alluding to the alleged crimes.

Her complaint led to the Nemom police in Thiruvananthapuram registering the first case against Mamkootathil. The case includes charges of rape and coercion to terminate a pregnancy. The survivor had initially submitted her complaint to the Chief Minister, who forwarded it to the police. 

Referring to the alleged forced termination of pregnancy, the survivor wrote that God had heard “cries that never reached the world” and stood by them when their bodies were violated and their babies “taken by force.” She also sought forgiveness from the unborn children, saying they had trusted the wrong person and a man “unworthy of being our child’s father.”

“Let their souls rest in peace, free from violence, free from fear, free from the world that failed to protect us. Our little ones, if our tears reach heaven, let them tell you this...Your mother never forgot you. Your mother never forgot you,” she took to Facebook. 

She concluded the note by saying the children would forever remain in their mothers’ hearts. “Your spirit matters. Kunjatta Amma loves you to the moon and back,” she wrote.

In this case, Mamkootathil is the first accused and has been booked under Sections 64(2)(f), 64(2)(h) and 64(2)(m) (rape), Section 89 (causing miscarriage without consent), Section 115(2) (voluntarily causing hurt), Section 351(3) (criminal intimidation) and Section 3(5) of the Bharatiya Nyaya Sanhita, along with Section 66E of the Information Technology Act for violation of privacy.

The second case, registered by the Crime Branch, stems from a complaint by a 23-year-old woman who alleged that Mamkootathil raped her in 2023 after promising marriage while she was studying outside Kerala. According to the complaint, he contacted her through Instagram and later Telegram, persuaded her to meet him during a vacation, took her to a secluded homestay and sexually assaulted her despite her resistance, causing injuries. He has been charged under Section 376 of the Indian Penal Code in this case.

The third case, in which Mamkootathil has now been arrested, is also a rape case based on a fresh complaint filed by another woman. The accused was taken into custody from a hotel in Palakkad town around midnight on Saturday. The survivor, a native of Thiruvalla currently living abroad, had sent her complaint by email to the Director General of Police. A special investigation team was subsequently constituted, and police said the arrest was formally recorded on Sunday after Mamkootathil was taken to the AR Camp in Pathanamthitta. This marks the first time Mamkootathil has been arrested, as he had remained absconding for a considerable period earlier and had later secured protection from arrest in the other cases.