Pramesh S Jain
In a respite to the BJP MLA Munirathna,the SIT recently filed closure report dropping charges of gang rape against him and four other citing lack of evidence.
According to sources,the SIT filed the ‘B’ report before the special court for elected representatives citing allegations made by the victim could not be substantiated .
The FIR was registered by the RMC Yard police on May 20 under IPC sections 376D (gang rape),270 (malignant act likely to spread infection of disease dangerous to life),323 (voluntarily causing hurt), 354 (assault or criminal force to woman with intent to outrage her modesty),504 (intentional insult with intent to provoke breach of the peace),506 (criminal intimidation),and 509 (word,gesture,or act intended to insult the modesty of a woman).
The case was then transferred to the SIT,which had probed two other cases against the MLA,one of them involving rape.
After three months of investigations, the SIT concluded that it was a false case,the allegations are baseless and cooked up,sources said .
However the SIT is yet to decide on taking action against the complainant under perjury and to continue investigation to ascertain people behind the fake complaint.
The victim aged around 40 years accused Munirathna orchestrated gang-rape through his associates, urinated on her face and injected her with a deadly virus.
The woman alleged she was hospitalised in January 2025 and discovered that she had contracted a virus.
Depressed at what had happened to her,she popped pills on May 19 and fell unwell,the FIR noted.
In a video released to the media on Wednesday, Munirathna said that he was informed about the B report through his advocate.It was a conspiracy to take revenge against me for the MP election,he said .
“After Dr CN Manjunath won from Bangalore Rural in the 2024 Lok Sabha election,cases were filed against me.
My lawyer told me that the ‘B’ report has been filed,but I don’t know on what grounds.But this shows that the truth has prevailed.Making women file false complaints must stop. Nobody is permanent.
Don’t use women for your selfish interests.God will protect me,”he said.
The SIT has already filed two charge sheets and a supplementary charge sheet against Munirathna in two other cases.
In the first case,where the FIR was registered in Kaggalipura in Ramanagara,the SIT charged the BJP MLA under IPC Sections 376(2)(n) (commits rape repeatedly on the same woman),270 (malignant act likely to spread infection of disease dangerous to life) and 354C (voyeurism).
Before that,the SIT filed another chargesheet related to the MLA hurling casteist abuses in another case.The SIT was formed in September 2024 after a slew of allegations against the MLA were made public by the victims.
