Kerala Madrassa teacher held for sexually abusing kids

A 63-year-old madrassa teacher was arrested for sexually assaulting students for as long as 38 years.

A 63-year-old madrassa teacher from Kerala was arrested, on Saturday, by the Thalayolaparambu police for sexually assaulting students for as long as 38 years.

The accused, Yusuf, who was working as a teacher at the Thalayolaparambu madrassa in Kottayam for the past two years, was apprehended following a complaint filed by the Mahallu committee, the mosque's executive committee on Friday, as reported by The New Indian Express.

“A week ago, a boy was called to his room under the pretext of teaching him the Quran. When the boy reached home, he looked frightened and depressed. When his parents inquired about the matter, he revealed he was sexually abused by Yusuf. The parents reported the matter to the Mahallu committee which suspended Yusuf before filing a case with the police,” said Thalayolaparambu Superintendent Soofi T M. Yusuf, who had been absconding since then, was seen giving religious talks at various mosques in Thrissur and Palakkad districts, added Soofi.

According to the police, Yusuf confessed to raping kids since the age of 25 and claimed that he was a victim of sexual abuse as a child himself. He even confessed to raping the daughter of the man who raped him as an act of revenge, the report said.

The police said that Yusuf, originally from Aluva, a serial offender who has raped over a dozen children, continued with his criminal behaviour as kids would not complain and often have no knowledge about the legal ramifications.

The newspaper reported that a girl student recently was hesitating to go to the madrassa class following alleged sexual abuse by Yusuf which made the child's parents registered a complaint with the Mahallu committee which then took the case to the police. “As both kids are below the age of 10, we didn’t interrogate them further. Once the medical test at the Vaikom Government Hospital is over, we will get further information on the physical assault,” said Soofi.