Kerala Home Minister vows crackdown on illegal spas and linked sex rackets

Kerala Home Minister Ramesh Chennithala warned that police will enforce stringent measures against illegal spas and the sex-rackets operating under their cover, following a gang-rape case in Kalamassery, Kochi. He said directives have been issued to the DGP, who is currently examining the matter, and emphasized that such criminal activity cannot be tolerated. Complaints of fraud, intimidation and sexual assault have been recorded throughout the state, with the highest concentration in Ernakulam and additional reports from Kozhikode and Thiruvananthapuram.

Police have apprehended two suspects, Saranya alias Ammu and Sanju, in Wayanad, and earlier detained Sreeraj and Jith Martin, who are now in judicial custody. The victim, allegedly attracted by a promised spa job, returned severely injured, and her partner recounted that four attackers, including a woman, assaulted her before she threatened self-harm, prompting the assailants to stop. Investigations continue to piece together the full sequence of events.