Karnataka: BJP MLA Munirathna sent to judicial custody till October 5
Bengaluru: A special court here on Saturday remanded Bharatiya Janata Party MLA Munirathna, arrested in a rape case, to judicial custody for 14 days till October 5.
Judge Shivakumar of the special MP/MLA court delivered the order in the case.
MLA Munirathna pleaded with the court to allow him to make submissions for a few minutes. When the court allowed him, Munirathna stated that the complaints were lodged by his supporters who were with him for five years. They are lodging fresh cases out of discords developed during the election period.
“I have been elected as a MLA four times. Every day, I am harassed for the position of MLA. Instead of getting harassed for this reason, I will submit my resignation immediately. I am a person who is in public life and without reason, they are indulging in my character assassination,” Munirathna claimed.
“If the rape incident had happened five years ago, they would have lodged a complaint then itself and the police stations were open at that time,” Munirathna submitted. “They are planning to keep me in jail for five years. Being a representative of people, I know how to behave with people,” he added.
The judge after hearing out MLA Munirathna’s pleas asked him to submit his resignation. The court also asked the police whether they wanted him in their custody. When police stated his custody was not required, MLA Munirathna was remanded to judicial custody.
“My client had been arrested with malicious intention. He was immediately arrested after obtaining bail in the atrocity case. The victim has not lodged the complaint directly in the case. The FIR is made based on the post received by the SP office,” Munirathna’s counsel said.
The counsel further submitted that the complainant has not approached the police directly and how did her signature come on the FIR? There is no wonder if many more cases are lodged against him. The police are claiming that he was arrested at 9 a.m. on Friday; however, the news was leaked much before. The police are leaking the matters of investigation and Munirathna was arrested with ill will.
The judge objected that the arrest memo procedures were not followed by the police while arresting Munirathna. Munirathna’s counsel had submitted the bail petition to the court.
MLA Munirathna was arrested in Bengaluru on Friday after a woman social activist filed a complaint alleging rape and criminal intimidation. The Kaggalipura Police took the MLA into custody immediately after he came out of the Bengaluru Central Prison.
The court on Thursday had granted him bail in other two cases registered at Vyalikaval police station over allegations of atrocity and issuing life threats.
Muniratha was jailed in Bengaluru Central Prison on charges of issuing life threats and using casteist slurs against a contractor. The Special Court had allowed Munirathna’s bail plea on Thursday in these cases.
The Kaggalipura police in Ramanagara district had filed an FIR against Munirathna on Thursday following a complaint by the woman social activist. The victim stated in her complaint that she was introduced to Munirathna in public life. He developed closeness by making calls to her over mobile. He had taken her to a godown owned by him in Mutyalanagara and raped her.
The complainant had also stated that he recorded the act and threatened her that if the matter came out, she would be dealt with severely. The victim also claimed that she was forced to honeytrap people in different private resorts. “BJP MLA forced me to carry out honey traps. He had threatened me with life to get this job done,” the victim stated in her complaint as per sources.