Kerala: Cricket coach Manu confesses to sexually molesting minor girl, claims it was consensual

Thiruvananthapuram: In a new development in the cricket coach sexual harassment case in Kerala, the accused Manu has admitted to raping a minor girl by taking her to Tenkasi in Tamil Nadu under the guise of a cricket match. He admitted to having assaulted the girl while being taken for evidence collection by the police. Manu, who coached for Kerala Cricket association (KCA) in Thiruvananthapuram, allegedly exploited many minor girls under the pretext of cricket practice. Currently, the Thiruvananthapuram's Cantonment police have registered a case against Manu based on six complaints received.

Manu was brought to Tenkasi and evidence was collected. Police found that the girls were made to stay in an unsafe lodge. Manu admitted that the girl was molested there. However, he claimed that it was not an assault but rather done with the consent of the girl. When interrogated, Manu denied the assault charges raised by other girls. He said that he was closely associated with the other girls only for practice requirements. However, the police have not taken his words into consideration.

The police have received evidence to corroborate the statements made by the other girls. The Cantonment police said that they will receive forensic evidence from Manu’s mobile phones soon.

Meanwhile, parents of the survivor, who had made the initial complaint, claimed that all the emails sent as complaints to the Kerala Cricket Association (KCA) and the District Cricket Association have been removed from his account. "All complaints sent to KCA and the District Cricket Association via email have been deleted. Along with this, all emails from February to June have been deleted from the ‘Sent Mail’ folder. All mail has been removed from the trash folder. It is suspected that this was done by accessing the email account from another device," the parents said, adding that they have filed a complaint with the Cyber cell and the Commissioner.

The accused has served as a cricket coach in Thiruvananthapuram for around ten years. A year and a half ago, a girl filed a molestation complaint against him, leading to his arrest and the police filing a charge sheet. However, Manu was acquitted after the complainant changed her statement. Despite this, he continued to work as a coach for KCA in Thiruvananthapuram.

A new complaint against Manu emerged three weeks ago during a Pink Cricket Tournament organised by the Kerala Cricket Association. The complaint stated that Manu sexually assaulted a girl under the guise of training. Following the registration of the case, more girls came forward with similar complaints. To date, the police have registered cases based on the complaints of six girls. An investigation was conducted in Tenkasi based on statements that Manu took the girls there and tortured them.

Complaints also indicate that Manu inappropriately touched the girls during net practice.

The accused regularly bought and kept these photos on his mobile phones. The police have taken two mobile phones used by the accused into custody.