Yediyurappa sexually abused minor victim; paid hush money to girl and her mother: CID chargesheet

The CID chargesheet states that BS Yediyurappa assaulted the minor and that he and three of his aides paid money to the victim and her mother to buy their silence.

Former Karnataka Chief Minister BS Yediyurappa sexually abused a minor girl and paid money to the victim and her mother to buy their silence, the CID wing of Karnataka Police, which is investigating the incriminating allegations of sexual abuse against the BJP veteran, said in its chargesheet even as the state High Court on Friday extended its injunction against the Criminal Investigation Department (CID) from arresting the 81-year-old politician.

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Yediyurappa called the victim in a separate room and tried to sexually abuse her

According to the CID chargesheet, the 17-year-old alleged victim and her 54-year-old mother visited Yediyurappa’s residence in Dollar’s Colony in Bengaluru seeking help in getting justice in an earlier sexual assault case of the girl, in which the 80-something-year-old ringleader had allegedly harassed the minor and attempted to sexually abuse her.

“Yediyurappa held the victim’s right wrist with his left hand while talking to the mother. He then called the minor into a meeting room adjacent to the hall, locked the door and asked her if she remembered the face of the person who had sexually abused her earlier, to which the victim replied ‘yes’ twice,” the chargesheet said.

Yediyurappa then asked her how old she was when she was allegedly sexually abused for the first time. She replied that she was six and a half years old. At that time, Yediyurappa allegedly tried to sexually abuse her, according to the CID.

Yediyurappa and helpers paid hush money to the victim and her mother

The horrified victim pushed Yediyurappa’s hand away, walked away and asked him to open the door. Yediyurappa then opened the door and left the building after giving the victim some cash from his pocket. He then told the victim’s mother that he could not help them in the case, also gave her some money from his pocket and sent her away, the chargesheet said.

After the incident came to light on February 20 this year when the victim’s mother uploaded a video on her Facebook account, the other accused – Arun, Rudresh and Mariswamy – at Yediyurappa’s behest took the mother-daughter duo to the BJP strongman’s house where Arun made the mother delete the video from her Facebook account and from her iPhone’s gallery while Rudresh allegedly paid the victim Rs 200,000 in cash to silence her, according to the CID chargesheet.

Karnataka HC extends interim order restraining CD from arresting Yediyurappa

Meanwhile, the Karnataka High Court on Friday extended its interim order restraining the CID from arresting Yediyurappa by two weeks.

A Supreme Court bench of Justice Krishna S. Dixit stayed its June 14 order and allowed the prosecution to file an objection to Yediyurappa’s petition seeking quashing of the proceedings against him.

The Special Public Prosecutor sought an extension to file an appeal, insisting that Yediyurappa’s application may not succeed as a chargesheet had already been filed.

The court then said, “These cases will be reheard the week after next at the request of the Special Prosecutor to file any objections. The preliminary injunction granted previously will remain in effect until the next hearing date.”

Sexual assault in Yediyurappa

The Karnataka Crime Branch has filed a case against veteran BJP politician BS Yediyurappa as part of its investigation into the former chief minister. He is accused of sexually assaulting a minor girl. Yediyurappa had met him at his residence earlier this year and sought help in getting justice in an earlier sexual assault case.

The CID chargesheet states that Yediyurappa assaulted the minor while he and three of his aides paid the victim and her mother money to buy their silence.

Yediyurappa, 81, has been charged under Section 8 (punishment for sexual assault) of the Protection of Children from Sexual Offences (POCSO) Act, and sections 354A (sexual molestation), 204 (destruction of documents or electronic records to prevent their production as evidence) and 214 (offering gift or return of property in return for verification of offender) of the Indian Penal Code (IPC).

The other three co-accused – Arun YM, Rudresh M and G Mariswamy, who are associates of Yediyurappa – are charged under sections 204 and 214 of the Indian Penal Code in the chargesheet filed in the Fast Track Court 1 for POCSO Act cases in Bengaluru.

On June 17, Yediyurappa was questioned by the CID for over three hours in connection with the case.

Earlier, a Bengaluru court had issued a non-bailable arrest warrant against Yediyurappa on June 13. The case was filed against him on March 14 this year. However, the very next day, the Karnataka High Court issued an interim order restraining the CID from arresting the BJP leader and directing him to appear before the agency for inquiry.

The victim’s mother, who had filed the case against Yediyurappa, died of lung cancer at a private hospital in Bengaluru last month.

The girl’s brother filed a petition in the court earlier this month, alleging that no progress had been made in the investigation despite the case being registered on March 14. The petitioner asked that Yediyurappa be arrested and interrogated.

Yediyurappa denied the allegations and said he would take legal action against the case.

(With contributions from agencies)