Idukki father acquitted after 18 months in POCSO case

An Idukki father who spent 18 months in jail under the POCSO Act has been acquitted by the Kattappana Fast Track Court after the prosecution failed to prove charges. The case, reported from Mariyapuram near Kattappana, arose after the father objected to his minor daughter's relationship with a boy she met on social media, English Mathrubhumi reports.

The father was arrested after a complaint alleging sexual abuse. The family believes the daughter's boyfriend and his family influenced the complaint. During the trial, the daughter reportedly did not maintain the allegations against her father. The boyfriend was also arrested on allegations concerning the minor.

The acquittal has ended the legal ordeal, but the family's younger son quit school due to social pressure while his father was in jail. He passed Class 10 but did not continue to Plus One. The father said he bears no resentment towards his daughter and wants her to live well.