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Bengaluru, Sep 21 (IANS) The Karnataka government has ordered a probe by a Special Investigation Team (SIT) against BJP legislator N. Munirathna who is facing charges of rape.
The government has issued an order to form the SIT. Senior IPS officer B.K. Singh will be heading the unit.
Labhu Ram, IGP Central Range; Sowmyalatha, Superintendent of Police, Railways, and C.A. Simon, Superintendent of Police have been named as members of the SIT.
The order stated that two criminal cases lodged in Vyalikaval police station, another case (rape and honey trapping) lodged at Kaggalipura police station and other cases lodged in police stations across the state would be handed over to the SIT.
On September 13, the first case under the provisions of 506, 504, 385, 420, 323 read with 34 of IPC, Atrocity Act and second case under the provisions of 153 (A)(1)(A) (B), 509, 504, 153 of IPC and Atrocity Act have been lodged against MLA Munirathna with Vyalikaval police station.
Kaggalipura police have lodged a criminal case under 354 (A), 354 (C), 376 (2) (N), 506, 504, 120 (B), 149, 406, 308 of the IPC and column 66, 66 (E) of the IT Act on Sept 18 following a complaint by a woman.
The government, considering the seriousness of the cases, to initiate a comprehensive investigation of these cases, decided to form the SIT team under the Criminal Investigation Department (CID) and given the order.
The DGP of the state has been directed to transfer all the cases that are lodged and those which will be lodged in future to the SIT team. He had also been instructed to provide the required manpower if required with necessary approval.
The SIT will function under the monitoring of DGP-CID.
The SIT has been ordered to complete the probe at the earliest and submit the report through the state police chief to the government.
Meanwhile, Chief Minister Siddaramaiah has been apprised that more victims are likely to come forward against Munirathna, and there is a need for a special mechanism to deal with the developments in the case.
The SIT is also likely to open a helpline for the victims to come forward and lodge cases against MLA Munirathna.
Senior IPS officer B.K. Singh also headed the SIT which probed the sex scandal involving Prajwal Revanna.
On Friday, Karnataka Congress leader D.K. Suresh alleged that Munirathna was trying to infect his adversaries with HIV and that the government should investigate the matter.
Suresh said: "A network of people led by BJP MLA Munirathna Naidu was conspiring to infect enemies with HIV. The government must investigate all those who are part of the network."
A special court here on Saturday sent Munirathna, arrested in a rape case, to judicial custody for 14 days till October 5.
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 BJP legislator into custody immediately after he came out of the Bengaluru Central Prison.
A court earlier on Thursday had granted him bail in two other cases registered at Vyalikaval police station over allegations of atrocity and issuing life threats to a contractor.
Earlier, Munirathna was jailed 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 a woman social activist.
The victim claimed in her complaint that Munirathna 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.
"The 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.
--IANS
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