The Kerala High Court has upheld the conviction of Muhammed, who was sentenced to 10 years of rigorous imprisonment for sexually assaulting a 73-year-old woman after allegedly claiming that he could remove evil spirits from her body. Justice A. Badharudeen dismissed his criminal appeal, finding no grounds to interfere with the trial court’s findings or sentence.
Background
The prosecution alleged that the incident occurred on October 8, 2022, when Muhammed visited the elderly woman at her residence in Thrissur. According to her testimony, he claimed that idols and evil spirits were affecting her body and used this explanation to subject her to sexual assault.
The Fast Track Special Court-II, Thrissur, convicted him under Sections 354A(1)(i) and 376(1) of the Indian Penal Code (IPC). It sentenced him to 10 years of rigorous imprisonment and imposed a fine of ₹1 lakh under Section 376(1). He also received three years of rigorous imprisonment and a fine of ₹25,000 under Section 354A(1)(i), with both prison terms running concurrently.
Before the High Court, the accused challenged the reliability of the prosecution’s evidence. His counsel argued that the survivor initially identified October 7 as the date of the incident but later corrected it to October 8. The defence also questioned the 19-day delay in registering the FIR, the absence of external injuries and the reliability of the call records.
The prosecution maintained that the date had been corrected in a subsequent statement and that the evidence supported the conviction.
Justice Badharudeen found that the discrepancy regarding the date did not undermine the prosecution’s case. The Court noted that the survivor had explained the initial error and that call records established three calls between her and the accused on October 8, 2022.
Addressing the delay in filing the complaint, the Court observed that the survivor had explained that she decided to approach the police after discussing the matter with her son, who was abroad, and her daughters.
The Court also rejected the argument that the absence of external injuries disproved the assault, noting that the medical examination took place 20 days after the incident.
It held:
“Since the incident took place 20 days back, if at all any injury was occurred due to the assault, it would have healed by the time of examination.”
After examining the evidence, the Court concluded that the discrepancies relied upon by the defence were insufficient to discredit the survivor’s testimony.
The High Court found no justification to interfere with either the conviction or the sentence. It dismissed the appeal and confirmed the trial court’s judgment.
The Court further cancelled the orders suspending the sentence and granting bail, directing Muhammed to surrender before the Special Court forthwith to undergo his sentence.
If he failed to do so, the Special Court was directed to execute the sentence.
Case Details
Case Title: Muhammed v. State of Kerala
Case Number: Criminal Appeal No. 2143 of 2024
Judge: Justice A. Badharudeen
Decision Date: October 12, 2026
