POSCO: Man gets 18 years jail for sexually abusing MBBS student

The decision was taken after an MBBS student, suffering from panic disorder and depression, told her doctor about the trauma she suffered from sexual abuse, leading to the punishment of the perpetrator more than a decade later.

The accused, a 56-year-old resident of the medical college, who was the victim's tuition teacher in 2013, repeatedly sexually abused the MBBS student. She would go to the accused's home for tuition. Subsequently, the victim suffered from depression, anxiety, and panic disorder, requiring psychiatric treatment and medication, according to Onmanorama.

The incident came to light in July 2024. While in the second year of MBBS at Alappuzha Medical College, she consulted the professor and HoD of Alappuzha Medical College and told them that she was suffering from depression, insomnia and lack of interest in everything.

Six months into treatment, she told the doctor that she had been repeatedly sexually abused as a child, when she was in grades 5 and 6. Despite experiencing depression, she hadn't told anyone about the incident. The doctor reported the case to the police and determined the survivor had post-traumatic stress disorder. According to the survivor, after the sexual abuse episodes, she had withdrawn from everyone, as per the daily

Her parents took her to a psychiatrist when she was a Plus One student, but the consultation was conducted online due to COVID-19 restrictions. She did not tell the doctor about the sexual abuse then.

The court noted the delay, but the judge stated that the prosecution had correctly explained it and that it should be understood in light of the mental distress. The court further stated that there was nothing to suggest that a false case was being foisted on the accused out of personal vengeance.