A total of eight arrests were made in Pollachi, located in Tamil Nadu's northwestern Coimbatore district, in February and March. (Image for representation)

Coimbatore District Collector K Rajamani on Tuesday invoked the provisions of the Goondas Act against the accused in the Pollachi sexual assault case.

It comes a day after the Pollachi Magistrate Court remanded the accused by 15 days.

Coimbatore district Superintendent of Police R Pandiarajan on Monday recommended the detention of the accused - Thirunavukkarasu (26), Sathish (29), Sabarirajan (25) and Vasanthakumar (24) under the Goondas Act.

As per the provisions of Goondas Act, a person may be detained without bail for a period that may extend up to one year.

The four men, believed to be part of a gang which committed crimes of sexual abuse for years, were taken into custody by the police after a college student filed a complaint.

A total of eight arrests were made in Pollachi, located in Tamil Nadu's northwestern Coimbatore district, in February and March.

However, only four key suspects were booked under IPC sections dealing with sexual harassment (354 A), assault (354 B) and under sections of the Information Technology Act, 2000, and the Tamil Nadu Prohibition of Women's Harassment Act.

The Pollachi case has now been transferred to CB-CID which is a special wing of the Central Bureau of Investigation (CBI).

The incident came to light when a college student complained to the Coimbatore police.

According to the police, the victim befriended one man, Sabarirajan, on social media. He asked her to skip class on February 12 and persuaded her to go sightseeing with him.

As soon as she entered Sabarirajan's car, some of his friends were already in the car. The gang sexually assaulted her and filmed it.

They also stole her gold jewellery before dropping her off.

They would later use the filmed video to blackmail her. During the investigation after the initial complaint, it was revealed that the gang was responsible for harassing several girls and women from schools and colleges.

DMK women's wing president and Rajya Sabha MP Kanimozhi has headed to Pollachi to protest over the sexual assault case. She is yet to obtain permission for the protest.