Chennai, Feb 9 Tamil Nadu Chief Minister M.K. Stalin on Sunday announced Rs 3 lakh financial aid for a pregnant woman who was pushed off a moving train near Katpadi by a 27-year-old man after she resisted his sexual assault bid.
He also said that the state government would bear her medical expenses.
The 36-year-old woman, a resident of Tirupur, had boarded the ladies compartment of the Tirupati-bound Intercity Express train from Tirupur station. After most passengers in her coach alighted at Jolarpettai, she was left alone when the accused, reportedly a history-sheeter, entered the compartment.
When the man made advances toward her, she attempted to escape by running towards the restroom. Enraged by her resistance, he pushed her out of the moving train. She sustained multiple fractures in her hand and leg and was rescued by passersby, who took her to the Government Medical College Hospital in Vellore.
Tragically, on Saturday, she suffered a miscarriage due to the injuries. Senior officials from the Chennai Division of Southern Railway visited the hospital and provided the woman with an ex gratia of Rs 50,000. Within 12 hours of the crime, the accused, Hemaraj of Pooncholai village near KV Kuppam, was arrested with the help of CCTV footage.
Police investigations revealed that he was already wanted by the Katpadi railway police for a robbery case, and a separate murder and rape case was pending against him at the Gudiyatham city police station.
The incident has intensified criticism against the state government, with the opposition targeting Chief Minister M.K. Stalin, who also oversees the home department.
The outrage comes amid a series of sexual assault cases in Tamil Nadu. In a separate case, Salem Police arrested a government school teacher in Yercaud on Friday night for sexually abusing 10 girl students. The accused, Ilayakannu (37), who taught science to students in classes 10 and 12, was booked under the Protection of Children from Sexual Offenses (POCSO) Act.
The incident came to light when one of the victims informed the school’s headmistress. The matter was immediately reported to officials of the education department and the District Child Protection Unit. Following this, an inquiry team visited the school and conducted investigations with the students.
Preliminary inquiries confirmed that the teacher had abused 10 students. Based on the complaint filed by the District Child Protection Unit, the Kondalampatti All Women’s Police Station registered a case under the POCSO Act and arrested the accused.
A few days earlier, three government school teachers were arrested for sexually assaulting a 13-year-old girl at Panchayat Union Middle School in Bargur, Krishnagiri district. The crime, which occurred in January, only came to light on February 3 when schoolteachers visited the girl’s home to inquire about her prolonged absence.
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