Chennai, June 3 -- A local court in Chennai on Monday sentenced a 37-year-old man, convicted for sexually assaulting a 19-year-old student of Anna University last year, to 30 years in prison without remission. Mahila court judge M Rajalakshmi pronounced the sentence in respect of each of the 11 charges proved by the prosecution and said the sentences will run concurrently. "He will not be entitled to any privileges or early release," public prosecutor Mary Jeyanthi told reporters after the verdict. "His phone is the weapon of this case," Jeyanthi said. "We submitted to the court a report from the forensic science lab which had analysed his phone activities on the day of the crime and concluded that he put his phone on flight mode. An official from his network provider testified in court that he received no calls post 6.29pm on December 23 until he received an SMS at 8.58pm stating his phone was in airplane mode during this time." Earlier on Wednesday, she convicted Gnanasekaran finding him guilty of charges under the Bharatiya Nyaya Sanhita, the Information Technology Act, and the Tamil Nadu Prohibition of Harassment of Women Act. In December 2024, Gnanasekaran, who worked as a vendor near the university, broke into the campus and assaulted the student. The FIR in the case said that Gnanasekaran forced the student to perform "sexual acts". The student told police that Gnanasekaran emerged from behind after having recorded a video of her with her friend on his mobile phone. He threatened to leak the video and send it to her father and the college authorities. Gnanasekaran threatened and first physically assaulted the student's friend, a third-year student. The student urged Gnanasekaran not to leak the video. Gnanasekaran took her friend away, asking her to wait at the same place. He then took the 19-year-old to a secluded spot about 200 metres away and sexually assaulted her. Gnanasekaran also took photos of her ID card and father's number and asked her to keep meeting him, failing which he said he would release her videos. Gnanasekaran was arrested on December 24 last year. However, the FIR of the case was downloaded from the CCTNS website of Tamil Nadu police and broadcast by certain sections of the media which created a furore. Later, the Madras high court transferred the case to a special investigation team, which also probed the FIR leak. The SIT filed a charge sheet in February before a magistrate court. Thereafter, the case was transferred to the Mahila Court. The judge, while convicting Gnanasekaran, said that he sought a lenient sentence claiming he was the sole bread-winner of the family and prosecution objected to it and sought maximum punishment. The ruling Dravida Munnetra Kazhagam (DMK), which was under fire over Gnanasekaran's alleged links with it, hailed the speedy verdict within five months, saying it showed the government's commitment to protecting women. DMK leader RS Bharathi said Gnanasekaran was arrested within 24 hours after the crime was reported, a charge sheet was filed within 60 days on February 24 and the police gathered strong evidence and the court found the accused guilty within five months....