Probe sought into complainant’s death in Pocso case against Yediyurappa
Karnataka state commission for women has sought investigation into the death of the woman who had filed a Pocso case against former state CM BS Yediyurappa.
The Karnataka state commission for women has sought an investigation into the death of the woman who had filed a Pocso case against former state chief minister BS Yediyurappa.
In a letter to Bengaluru police commissioner B Dayanand on Monday, commission chairperson Nagalakshmi Chowdhury said cremation of the complainant was not done as per “proper procedure” raising concerns over her death.
On March 14 , a woman had lodged a complaint at the Sadashivanagar police station in Bengaluru, accusing the Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) leader of sexually assaulting her minor daughter when she sought his help at his residence on February 2 ,2024.
The case, registered under the Protection of children from sexual offences (Pocso) Act, was later transferred to the Criminal Investigation Department (CID). The trial is currently going in the case in a local court.
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The mother died at a private hospital on May 26 due to complications from lung cancer. However, her brother and members of family have raised concern over the circumstances leading to her death and the subsequent cremation.
They filed a complaint with the police on May 27, alleging that her body was cremated without an autopsy, raising suspicions of foul play.
“After filing the complaint against Yediyurappa, my aunt (the complainant) was receiving threats from his supporters‘’ said K Nagaraj , a relative of the complainant. “The supporters even deleted few recorded video clips of the incident from her mobile forcibly. We suspect they might poisoned her to silence her.”
The family, along with women’s rights activists, have pointed out several irregularities surrounding her death such as she might have been poisoned as she was facing threats from Yediyurappa’s supporters and demanded a thorough investigation. These concerns have been take up by the Karnataka State Commission for Women, which has taken the matter up with the Bengaluru city police.
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Chowdhury in her letter to the commissioner, urged for a detailed inquiry into the woman’s death and the decisions made regarding her cremation. “Two days ago, the woman’s daughter met me. Our question is how could she suddenly succumb to cancer without any prior sign,” she told reporters. “All these issues have caused significant suspicion. The family of the victim has filed a complaint at the Hulimavu police station. It does not matter if the accused is a former chief minister, the culprits, whoever they may be, must be brought to justice,” she asserted.
In response to the allegations, BJP state unit spokesman Ashwath Narayan said that the case is pending for hearing in court . “This kind of letter is only aimed to get publicity. However we don’t oppose the probe , we welcome it ,” he added.
