The Karnataka State Women’s Commission has sought a police investigation into the death of a woman who accused former chief minister Karnataka Chief Minister BS Yediruppa of sexually abusing her minor daughter.
The commission has asked the Bengaluru Police for a report, citing concerns surrounding the woman’s death and subsequent burial of her body.
The woman, who had alleged Yediruppa in February this year of molesting her 17-year-old daughter at his Bengaluru residence, passed away in May. According to doctors, she succumbed to lung cancer.
Women’s Commission seeks proper investigation
Nagalakshami Chaudhary, the chairperson of the Women’s Commission, sent a letter to the Bengaluru police Commissioner, urging a prompt and thorough investigation into the case.
Speaking to India Today TV, it was reported that the victim’s brother, along with several organizations have filed a complaint, alleging that no postmortem was conducted on the woman after her death.
They found it suspicious that the postmortem had not been carried out. The report further highlighted that once a complaint is lodged, the police are required to investigate
The sexual assault complaint against Yediruppa was originally filed in March 2024.
However, due to what was perceived as police inaction, the victims’s brother submitted a new petition in June this year, calling for Yediruppa’s immediate arrest and investigation
The Criminal Investigation Department (CID) of Karnataka police, currently handling the case of Yediruppa, filed its chargesheet under the Protection of Children from Sexual Offences (POCSO) Act on July 25
What is in the chargesheet?
According to the chargesheet, the woman and her daughter had approached Yediruppa to seek justice for a prior sexual assault involving the daughter. Yediruppa allegedly grabbed the minor’s wrist took her to a meeting room and locked the door.
Inside the room, he reportedly asked the girl if she could remember the face of her rapist. When the girl, who was six and a half years old at the time of the assault, confirmed that she could Yediruppa then allegedly molested her as stated in the chargesheet.
As of now, Yediruppa has denied the allegations describing them as baseless and expressing his contest to the charges in court
