Rs 2.45 Lakh Fine, 10 Years Jail For Nirmala Devi, Convicted For Trafficking Girls For Sexual Favours

Fast Track Mahila court in Srivilliputhur on Tuesday sentenced assistant professor Nirmala Devi to 10 years in for luring college girls to give sexual favours at the Madurai Kamaraj University.

On Monday, the court had found Nirmala Devi guilty while acquitting V Murugan, former assistant professor at MKU, and S Karuppasamy, ex-research scholar, named in the case for the lack of evidence.

Following arguments from both sides, the judge pronounced the sentence, and Nirmala Devi was taken to Madurai Central Prison. Convicted under five sections, including the Immoral Traffic (Prevention) Act, Nirmala Devi was also dismissed from her position after a leaked audio clip of her conversations with students went viral on social media sites in 2018.

The court has also imposed a fine of Rs 2.45 lakh on her and excluded the days she has already spent in jail.

The suspended professor faced charges under Sections 370(1) and (3) of the Indian Penal Code for attempted human trafficking, along with Section 120(B) for criminal conspiracy.

Nirmala's arrest, coupled with her reference to the Governor, sparked a significant controversy. As a result, Purohit appointed a one-man commission, chaired by retired bureaucrat R Santhanam, to investigate the matter.