Chennai, May 28 (IANS) Nearly five months after the sexual assault of a student inside the Anna University campus, the Mahila Court in Chennai, Tamil Nadu, on Wednesday found the sole accused, Gnanasekaran (37), guilty on 11 counts, including rape.

The court, presided over by Judge M. Rajalakshmi, announced that sentencing will be pronounced on June 2.

The charge sheet in the case was filed on February 24 by a Special Investigation Team (SIT) that took over the probe from the Greater Chennai Police.

Gnanasekaran, a roadside biryani vendor and a DMK local leader with a known criminal background, was initially arrested by the local police soon after the incident.

According to the prosecution, the incident took place on December 23, 2024, when the victim, a second-year engineering student, was spending time with her male friend on campus.

Gnanasekaran confronted the couple, threatened them with a fabricated video of them being intimate, and warned that he would share it with university officials to have them expelled.

He then coerced the boy into leaving and manipulated the girl into following him to a secluded part of the campus. Pretending that the boy was being investigated by university staff, he further intimidated the victim.

When she refused to comply with his demands, Gnanasekaran allegedly sexually assaulted her and recorded the act on his mobile phone.

He later took her phone number and blackmailed her, threatening to send the video to her father and college authorities if she failed to meet him again. However, the girl demonstrated remarkable courage by refusing to stay silent.

With the support of her family and college authorities, she filed a complaint the very next day at the Kotturpuram All Women Police Station. The swift action by the police led to Gnanasekaran’s immediate arrest.

During the trial, his counsel pleaded for leniency in sentencing, citing personal grounds. However, the prosecution strongly objected, stressing the heinous nature of the crime and the long history of criminal offences attributed to the accused.

Judge Rajalakshmi, after hearing both sides, reserved the pronouncement of sentence for June 2.

The verdict has been hailed as a significant step toward justice for the survivor and a strong message against crimes targeting women on educational campuses.

–IANS

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