Kerala priest, film director, politician held for minor's rape

KOCHI (Kerala): The Kerala police on Friday arrested a Christian priest, a film director and a politician for the alleged rape and abuse of a minor girl.

The arrested included Father Kuriakose Mangalath, film director Rajan Sithara, and Kerala Congress (Joseph) party activist Shibhu.

While Sithara was arrested by a special investigation team (SIT) in Thrissur, the other two were taken into custody from Kottayam.

The case pertains to 2002, when a 17-year-old girl came to Kochi in search of work. She fell into a trap of sex racketeers and was allegedly abused by a large number of people. The victim also alleged that pornographic films were made using her.

The girl was later arrested in Thoppumpadi near Kochi. Since then, the case has hit the headlines as Thoppumpadi sex scandal.

The police, based on the statement of the victim, has listed names of 69 people who had abused her when she was a minor and arrested 13 of them. The list reportedly has several high-profile names.

The investigations later went into a limbo and all the 13 arrested people were granted bail.

In 2006, the girl's mother moved the Kerala Hight Court, which appointed the SIT.