A group of men allegedly beat up the 17-year-olds last week after they cameout of an internet cafe in Kattankudi, a mostly Muslim town.
The father of one of the girls says they were accused of watching pornography- a charge the girls deny.
Mohammad Yusuf Abdul Razak told the BBC that the issue had been blown out ofproportion because of an earlier announcement made from mosque loudspeakersthat that two girls had been viewing pornography.
Mr Razak said that a group of men forcefully took his daughter and the othergirl to a local house and beat them up, before taking them to a local Islamicoffice.
�After that, an announcement was made from a mosque using loudspeakers thattwo girls were caught doing wrongful things,� Mr Razak said.
After hearing this announcement, Mr Razak says, a large crowd gathered andstarted to denounce the girls.
Police finally intervened and the girls were taken to hospital for treatmentfor their injuries, he said.
Local Muslims deny making announcements regarding the girls from a mosque.But they agreed on Wednesday to comply with court orders to broadcast theexonerations.
�Today we made announcement from about eight or nine mosques covering thewhole area of the Kattankudi town,� said Mosque Federation Chairman MohammadIbrahim.
�The crux of the message is the girls have not been found guilty of anywrongdoing and are innocent. Local people should help those girls and theirfamily to live in peace.�
Police are yet to trace the main accused. But Mr Razak said that he washappy with the retraction.
�I want to thank the judge for restoring our honour,� he said, BBC reports.
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