New Delhi : Special court in Chennai on Friday pronounced the quantum of punishment in the Anna University sexual abuse case, in which the accused, Gnanasekaran, was earlier this week found guilty on all eleven charges. Justice Rajalakshmi, who presided over the proceedings, sentenced Gnanasekaran to thirty years of imprisonment and imposed a fine of Rs 90,000.
Mahila Court in Chennai declared Gnanasekaran guilty on all eleven charges levelled against him. The court held that the charges were substantiated through documentary. Incident occurred around 8 pm on December 23, last year, when Gnanasekaran, a resident of Kottur who ran a biryani stall near the Anna University campus, allegedly entered the premises, sexually assaulted a female student in a secluded area.
Gnanasekaran also allegedly recorded a video of the incident and used it to blackmail the victims. He was arrested by the Greater Chennai Police and remanded to judicial custody. Photographs of Gnanasekaran with functionaries of the ruling DMK had surfaced, sparking a political row. While the DMK had initially denied any association, Opposition parties had circulated images suggesting he held a post in the party.
Photographs of Gnanasekaran with functionaries of the ruling DMK had surfaced, sparking a political row. While the DMK had initially denied any association, Opposition parties had circulated images suggesting he held a post in the party. BJP leader K Annamalai had alleged that Gnanasekaran was a DMK student wing office-bearer and had shared photographs of him with DMK leaders.
Tamil Nadu Law Minister S Regupathi had rejected the allegations, maintaining that Gnanasekaran was not a party office-bearer. Chief Minister K Stalin had also addressed the matter in the Legislative Assembly, stating, “I assure you that the one arrested in the Chennai student case is not a member of DMK. He is a DMK sympathiser, we don’t deny it.”