4 associates of former Karnataka chief minister B S Yediyurappa are beneath investigation for alleged tampering of proof in a Safety of Kids in opposition to Sexual Offences (POCSO) Act case filed in opposition to the 81-year-old BJP chief by the mom of a minor sufferer in March this yr.
One of many associates is alleged to have visited the house of the sufferer after the incident and brought the sufferer and her mom again to the residence of the previous CM the place the cell phones belonging to the victim and her mother have been taken away by one other affiliate.
A video recording of the assembly with the previous CM which was on one of many telephones was allegedly deleted by one of many associates, a public prosecutor instructed a particular POCSO court docket on Thursday whereas in search of an arrest warrant for Yediyurappa within the POCSO case.
The CID unit of the Karnataka Police which is investigating the POCSO case in opposition to Yediyurappa, after it was initially registered by the Bengaluru police, has recovered the deleted video utilizing digital instruments, sources stated.
Tampering with proof beneath Part 204 of the Indian Penal Code is a bailable offence with a most of two years imprisonment.
Along with tampering with proof, the associates beneath probe additionally allegedly supplied an quantity of Rs 2 lakh to the sufferer and her mom in money quickly after the incident and compelled them to take it, the general public prosecutor argued whereas in search of the arrest warrant in opposition to the previous CM.
The sufferer’s mom, who died on Could 26 this yr after a protracted battle with cancer, was instructed by the associates of the previous CM to simply accept the cash supplied and to contemplate it as a mortgage that might be returned later. One of many associates is reported to have contested an meeting ballot in Karnataka a couple of years in the past.
The alleged sexual offence occurred on February 2, 2024, when the mom of the sufferer took her to fulfill the previous CM Yediyurappa to rally assist for justice for her daughter in an earlier case of sexual assault on her by a relative in 2015.
The girl filed a grievance in opposition to the previous CM beneath the POCSO Act and IPC Part 354 A for sexual harassment on March 14, 2024, alleging that he had carried out sexual offences in opposition to her daughter throughout the assembly.
A particular court docket for POCSO circumstances in Bengaluru issued an arrest warrant for the previous CM on Thursday within the wake of an utility by the CID for custodial questioning of Yediyurappa after he sought time until June 17 to seem earlier than the CID after a discover was issued by the CID on June 10 – for Yediyurappa’s look earlier than an investigating officer on June 12.
The voluntary statements of the sufferer and her mom in regards to the incident have been recorded by a Justice of the Peace’s court docket as a part of the investigations. A voluntary assertion has additionally been recorded of a witness conversant in the incident.
The voice samples of Yediyurappa that have been obtained on April 12 throughout the investigations matched with the voice samples from conversations reportedly recorded with the previous CM by the sufferer’s mom on a cell phone on the day of the incident, sources stated.
Yediyurappa has sought anticipatory bail within the POCSO case within the Karnataka Excessive Court docket. The matter is scheduled to be heard on Friday afternoon by a particular bench for listening to circumstances in opposition to elected representatives.
Yediyurappa has additionally sought the quashing of the POCSO case on the grounds that it’s politically motivated and with out prima facie proof. He has sought a keep on the probe as an interim measure. The quashing petition can be scheduled to be heard on Friday afternoon.
Offences beneath the POCSO Act are non-bailable though the cost in opposition to Yediyurappa is beneath Part 8 of POCSO for sexual assault –which entails a most imprisonment of 5 years. He’s additionally accused of sexual harassment beneath Part 354 A of the Indian Penal Code which is bailable and entails imprisonment of as much as three years.