Anna Varsity Sexual Assault Case: NCW to Submit Report to Centre

CHENNAI:
The National Commission for Women (NCW) will submit a report to the Government of India on the sexual assault case that occurred at the Anna University campus. NCW member Mamta Kumari and her team returned to Delhi after conducting a two-day investigation into the sexual assault that took place on the Anna University campus on December 23.

Speaking to media persons at Chennai airport, Mamta Kumari said, “We visited every corner of Anna University and conducted a thorough investigation. We met the victim girl and her family and gathered all the necessary information. We also met with the Governor of Tamil Nadu to discuss the matter.”

She added, “A detailed report on the investigation will be submitted to the central government through the National Commission for Women. Whoever is found guilty will face strict punishment. It is shocking that despite having over 20 cases against him, the accused was allowed to roam free.”

Mamta Kumari further questioned, “Why didn’t the government take action earlier? The central government will ensure strict action against anyone who commits crimes against women.”

She expressed confidence that justice would be served and guilty parties would be punished.

The incident involved a second-year engineering student of Anna University, who was sexually assaulted on the university campus. The attack occurred while the girl and her male friend were sitting after attending a midnight Christmas mass at a nearby church.

According to the police, the accused attacked the male friend, brutally assaulting him before dragging the girl to nearby shrubs, where he raped her. The accused, Gnanasekaran, a roadside biryani vendor, was arrested immediately after the girl filed a complaint with the police.

Following the incident, the Tamil Nadu BJP alleged that the accused, Gnanasekaran, was affiliated with the student wing of the ruling DMK. State BJP President K. Annamalai criticized the DMK government for the deteriorating law and order situation in Tamil Nadu. He staged a dramatic protest outside his residence in Coimbatore, flogging himself six times to symbolize the removal of evil.

Annamalai also announced that he would undertake a 48-day fast and visit all six holy abodes of Lord Murugan as part of his protest. The Tamil Nadu BJP president lashed out at the police for leaking the FIR in the sexual assault case, stating that the leak intentionally revealed the identity of the 19-year-old victim, an engineering student of Anna University.

He charged that the accused Gnanasekaran was not in the rowdy list of the Tamil Nadu police despite being involved in several cases. Annamalai said that this was due to the accused Gnanasekaran’s proximity to the DMK leaders.

The Tamil Nadu BJP Chief, also a former IPS officer, said that the accused Gnanasekaran was a functionary of the DMK and provided proof of the same. He also said that the DMK was trying to divert attention from the failing law and order situation of Tamil Nadu by creating a false narrative of the North-South divide.