Thiruvananthapuram:
After the horrific case of sexual exploitation of a minor girl by nearly 100 men came to light in Kerala, chief minister Oommen Chandy today promised stringent punishment against the culprits.
Expressing shock over the incident, Mr Chandy said, "Police is actively probing the case...government will not allow anyone to escape the law".
Earlier, police teams were sent to Tamil Nadu, Karnataka and various parts of Kerala to nab at least 70 persons for the alleged sexual exploitation of the16-year-old in connivance with her father.
The action came after the girl revealed to police about her sexual exploitation, including by her own father, police said.
The child is being treated for venereal diseases at a government hospital here. According to the police who believe that 100-odd persons might be involved in the case, 29 had been arrested in recent days.
The girl told police that her father, who used to do odd roles in Malayalam films, first exploited her and then let many others in the industry and outside to do the same.
Hailing from Paravoor in Ernakulam district, the girl had revealed to a close relative about her plight following which a police complaint was filed some three months ago.
Police had said that 71 accused were absconding and five squads had been formed to trace them.
The victim had named some persons and a few more had to be identified, Crime Branch SP S Surendran told PTI. on Saturday.
'We are collecting the details of the accused. There is no information about involvement of politicians,' he said.
Police had arrested a Tamil Nadu PWD contractor two days ago. His car which was used to transport the girl to his farm house had been seized.