It has been over two years since Jomon, an aspiring cricketer from Kerala’s Thiruvananthapuram, left the sport. He was 21 years old when he joined the Kerala Cricket Association (KCA) with dreams of pursuing a successful career. However, in 2022, everything changed after he supported a 12-year-old student who alleged that their coach had sexually abused her. Manu M, the coach in question, is currently under remand for six sexual abuse cases under the Protection of Children from Sexual Offences Act (POCSO) that were registered against him in June this year. 

The first complaint against Manu was officially registered in July 2022 at the Thiruvananthapuram Cantonment police station by the 12-year-old, who hailed from Tamil Nadu. Jomon, along with eight other male cricketers, assisted the child’s family with filing the complaint. Years later, coach Manu was apprehended by the police again over six other complaints related to incidents spanning from 2018 to May 2024.

Jomon and his fellow cricketers, Akhil and Nikesh, opened up to TNM about how the KCA and the police sided with the accused, and also caused them to lose out on their dreams for standing by the survivor.

2022 POCSO case 

In July 2022, Jomon encountered a survivor alone one evening. She revealed that Manu, her coach, had instructed her to attend a morning practice session without informing anyone. On another occasion, Jomon noticed the girl seemed distressed. "I inquired about what happened, and she disclosed that Manu had behaved inappropriately during their stretching exercises," Jomon informed TNM. However, Jomon did not take immediate action.

On the same day, another girl around 10 years old approached Jomon with a similar experience. "The 12-year-old convinced the younger girl to share her experience," Jomon added. "Feeling unsure of how to proceed, I informed my friends."

Akhil, another trainee, got to know about these incidents through Jomon. “It was two girls complaining about the same person. We recorded their video explaining what happened to them to send it to the police,” Akhil said. 

“At that time, we didn't know that we were not supposed to record the video of a survivor. We only wanted to show the police what those children were going through and only after reaching the police station did we realise that it was not the right way to do it,” Jomon recalled. Indian laws prohibit recording or circulating any material that reveals the identity of survivors of sexual abuse.

Even though Jomon and Akhil knew two girls who had been victimised, a case was initially filed with regard to only the 12-year-old from Tamil Nadu. “The other child’s father told us that he did not want to proceed,” Akhil told TNM.

They first approached the Child Welfare Committee (CWC) and then registered the complaint at the police station. Akhil, Jomon, and Nikesh, along with their friends, helped the child’s family with the process and it was Akhil who gave the written complaint at the station, following which the child’s statement was recorded by a magistrate as mandated by the law. 

A day after filing the complaint, Jomon, Akhil, and Nikesh, along with some friends, confronted Manu at KCA. “We were very angry with him. Our emotions ran high and we ended up quarrelling with him,” Jomon said. Akhil explained that during the confrontation, Manu admitted that he had committed the crime. “He apologised to me and admitted what he did was wrong. He requested us to not make a scene,” Akhil recalled. Jomon added that they demanded Manu’s resignation and an apology to the students. 

Manu left the premises after the altercation. Soon after, the then KCA secretary Renjith Rajendran organised a meeting with the rest of them present there. The KCA office is situated right next to the ground where the training takes place. “Ranjith was in his office while the argument took place. Once Manu left, he came out and assured that action will be taken if Manu is found guilty. But eventually, nothing came out of it,” Nikesh told TNM.

When the case came to the court, the survivor changed her statement, and the court acquitted Manu. According to Akhil, the case was “settled by cash”. 

‘The system sided with the accused’

Jomon, Akhil, and Nikesh allege that KCA officials shielded Manu. “Manu was a player at the Masters Club, owned by Vinod, the current secretary and the then treasurer of KCA. They have a connection, and Manu came to KCA through Vinod. So he always had his support,” Akhil said. He stressed that former KCA secretary Renjith was at his office when they confronted Manu. “He did not come out until Manu had left. It is not because he didn't know about this. They chose not to interfere,” Akhil added. 

Nikesh alleged that the police too turned hostile after filing the complaint. “The police were cooperative on the first day when we filed the complaint at the Thiruvananthapuram Cantonment police station. But their behaviour changed overnight. The next day, they treated us as if we were the accused,” Nikesh said. 

Akhil said that during the long hours for which they were made to wait at the station, the police did not call or question Manu. “On the third day after the complaint was registered, I went to the station to inquire about my mobile, which was under police custody because we had filmed the survivors. The Sub Inspector (SI) told me that 12 petitions had been filed against me at the station, alleging that I made up this case to get Manu in trouble,” Akhil explained. He told TNM that there was no action taken against him related to those petitions. “One of the police officials said that even though the handwriting was different, the content of the 12 letters were the same. I don't have any more information about these petitions. However, I am sure that this was done by someone with the intention of making me withdraw the petition that I submitted,” Akhil alleged. 

Jomon said that they thought everyone would support them since this was a serious case, but nobody did, despite knowing that Manu misbehaved with the girls.

While filing the complaint, the survivor did not receive much support from peers or their parents. Many of these parents later clarified that this was because Manu had successfully convinced them that the complaint was part of a conspiracy against him in the wake of the KCA elections. 

In June 2024, another girl student filed a complaint of sexual assault against Manu. When news of her complaint became public, other survivors who had trained under Manu came forward and filed complaints against him. "Manu told his girl students, as young as 11 or 12 years old, that there were two ways to succeed in cricket: one was to play extremely well, and the other involved additional methods. My 12-year-old didn't understand what he meant back then,” one parent told TNM.

Read: A cricket coach sexually abused minor girls for years — and the powers let him get away

The cost of standing by the survivor

Akhil said that the eight cricketers including himself who supported the child, had to give up their long-cherished dream of playing professional cricket. “Some of them did not return to KCA for coaching, and a few others mentioned that their coaching had been cancelled,” he recalled. 

Nikesh joined KCA in 2022, around three to four months before this incident. After this incident, KCA informed some of them that their batch wouldn't have coaching anymore. “They told us there would be no coaching and we didn’t enquire more,” he said.

Akhil mentioned that If they had chosen not to get involved or remained silent, they might have achieved more. Instead, they chose to fight. “I am a bowler and it was my passion. A T20 match between India and South Africa was scheduled to be held at Greenfield International Stadium, Karyavattom, in September 2022, about two months after this incident. Two to three students would have had the opportunity to bowl to senior Indian players for their training sessions. I am sure that I would have been the first player they would choose. But I felt it was wrong not to stand with the survivor,” Akhil said.

Though these cricketers left, Manu continued in KCA till May 2024. Vinod Kumar, the present KCA secretary and then treasurer, told TNM that when the complaint was registered against Manu, they had asked him to stay away from coaching without salary. But after the court gave him a clean chit, they took him back. 

Read our coverage of this story here

A cricket coach sexually abused minor girls for years — and the powers let him get away

Kerala Cricket Assn sat on sexual assault, bullying complaints against coach since 2018