Saturday, February 7, 2026
ADVT 
International

British-Indian Cult Leader Aravindan Balakrishnan Under Trial For Rape, Abuse

Darpan News Desk IANS, 17 Nov, 2015 12:34 PM
    An Indian-origin Maoist cult leader is under trial on the charges of "psychologically stripping", raping and forcing women to perform degrading sex acts in London, a media report said.
     
    Aravindan Balakrishnan appeared in court on Monday over allegations of sexually abusing a woman by "using mind control to psychologically strip her, rape and force her to perform degrading sex acts" at his house in Brixton district in pre-arranged sessions, the Daily Mail reported.
     
    Known as "Comrade Bala" in London, the leader has denied the charges of four counts of rape and seven of indecent assault.
     
    He also denied three counts of actual bodily harm, cruelty to a child under 16 and false imprisonment in the 1970s and 1980s.
     
    The alleged victim, who was a follower of the leader, escaped in 1989, but did not speak about the alleged abuse until she went to the police in 2013, the report said.
     
    The victim, now 64, told the Southwark Crown Court in London how the now 75-year-old Bala "took over my mind".
     
    She said that he allegedly groomed and raped her and forced her to keep explicit sex diaries that he shared with the rest of his sect in a bid to humiliate her, the court heard.
     
    Balakrishnan, the leader of a far-Left group in Brixton, was also accused of treating women "like animals".
     
    The victim said she never opposed to this because she thought the treatment meant she was "being taken up a level in the revolution".
     
    "His authority was so complete, you never thought about resisting and saying 'I don't want to go in, I don't want this to happen'. We were like animals being trained," she added.
     
    The court heard that she had first met Balakarishnan at a demonstration when she was 23. She soon became entranced by him and joined his "Worker's Institute".

    MORE International ARTICLES

    Indian-Origin Man Allowed To Sell Alcohol In Britain's Only Dry Village, Bournville After 120 Years

    Indian-Origin Man Allowed To Sell Alcohol In Britain's Only Dry Village, Bournville After 120 Years
    While newsagent Kamal Sharma was delighted with the decision, the opposition and Bournville councillor Rob Sealey described the decision as "catastrophic"

    Indian-Origin Man Allowed To Sell Alcohol In Britain's Only Dry Village, Bournville After 120 Years

    I Am Just A Normal Girl: Malala

    I Am Just A Normal Girl: Malala
    Malala, who survived an assassination attempt on her by the Taliban, has since become one of the most famous teenagers in the world.

    I Am Just A Normal Girl: Malala

    Indian-Origin Woman Kulwinder El Assad Jailed For Smuggling £1.9 Million Heroin In Chapati Oven

    Indian-Origin Woman Kulwinder El Assad Jailed For Smuggling £1.9 Million Heroin In Chapati Oven
    Kulwinder El Assad, 40, attempted to to import the heroin from Islamabad with the help of Arbab Akhtar, 29, from Blackburn and Mohammed Aslam Khan, 61, from Ashton-Under-Lyne.

    Indian-Origin Woman Kulwinder El Assad Jailed For Smuggling £1.9 Million Heroin In Chapati Oven

    Oregon Community College Shooting: 10 Die In US, Religious Intolerance Suspected

    Oregon Community College Shooting: 10 Die In US, Religious Intolerance Suspected
    The gunman identified as 26-year-old Chris Harper Mercer, opened fire at the Community College campus in Oregon before having an exchange of fire with police

    Oregon Community College Shooting: 10 Die In US, Religious Intolerance Suspected

    Indian-Origin Woman Tharishini Chandra Segaran To Represent Malaysia At Unesco Forum

    Indian-Origin Woman Tharishini Chandra Segaran To Represent Malaysia At Unesco Forum
    A 21-year-old Indian origin woman has been selected to represent Malaysia at the ninth UN Educational, Scientific and Cultural Organisation (Unesco) Youth Forum to be held in France from October 26 to 28.

    Indian-Origin Woman Tharishini Chandra Segaran To Represent Malaysia At Unesco Forum

    UK Revokes Ban: Sikhs In Britain Can Now Wear Turbans At Majority Of Workplaces

    UK Revokes Ban: Sikhs In Britain Can Now Wear Turbans At Majority Of Workplaces
    Turban-wearing Sikhs will now have the right to choose not to wear head protection and will be exempt from legal requirements to wear a safety helmet in the majority of workplaces

    UK Revokes Ban: Sikhs In Britain Can Now Wear Turbans At Majority Of Workplaces