Kochi: Maoist cult leader Aravindan Balakrishnan, whose father hailed from Kollam, has been found guilty of child cruelty and falsely imprisoning his daughter in the UK.
The Guardian reports that Balakrishnan, 75, who led a secretive commune in south London from 1975 to 2013 after emigrating from Singapore, was also convicted of four charges of raping members of his sect, six charges of indecent assault and two charges of assault.
Judge Deborah Taylor at Southwark crown court told him to expect a substantial custodial sentence but ordered a psychiatric report before the sentencing on January 29.
Balakrishnan established the Workers’ Institute of Marxism-Leninism-Mao Zedong Thought at 140 Acre Lane, Brixton, in 1975 and turned it into a secretive cult. He led a small group of about 10 women in preparation for China to take over the world and create “an international dictatorship of the proletariat”.
According to sources in Kerala, Balakrishnan’s father had worked as a civilian at the British Naval base in Singapore. Balakrishan completed his bachelor’s degree in Singapore before joining the London School of Economics. Mr K. Venu, former top ideologue of Maoist movement in Kerala, said that he had never heard about Balakrishnan. Balakrishnan’s daughter, was imprisoned in the commune till she was 30, ruled over by her father.
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