The Thalassery Protection of Children from Sexual Offences (POCSO) special court will pronounce its verdict on Friday — observed as Children’s day — in the Palathayi sexual abuse case involving a teacher accused of sexually assaulting a Standard 4 student.
The verdict will be delivered by judge M.T. Jalaja Rani. The accused, K. Padmarajan, 49, was charged with sexually abusing a 10-year-old student at a school at Palathayi between January and February 2020.
According to the prosecution, he took the child to the bathroom on three occasions and sexually assaulted her. The case was first reported to Childline, which alerted the Panoor police. Based on a complaint by the child’s mother, a case was registered on March 17, 2020, and Padmarajan was arrested on April 15 from a hideout in Poyilur Vilakottur.
The investigation was later handed over to the Crime Branch on April 24, following a request from the victim’s mother. The trial began on February 23, 2024 and continued until August 13, 2025.
Following concerns over the initial probe, the Kerala High Court had intervened, and a new team led by Coastal Additional Director General of Police E.J. Jayaraj had taken over the probe. The final chargesheet was filed in May 2021 under relevant provisions of the POCSO Act and the Juvenile Justice Act.
Published – November 13, 2025 09:10 pm IST
