New Delhi: A fast-track court in Bengaluru summoned BJP leader and former Karnataka chief minister B.S. Yediyurappa on Thursday to appear before it on July 17 in connection with the sexual assault case against him, reports have said.
It has summoned Yediyurappa for the purpose of framing charges against him based on the Karnataka crime investigation department (CID)’s chargesheet filed recently, The Hindu reported.
The CID has invoked Section 8 of the Protection Of Children from Sexual Offences Act (which deals with sexual assault) as well as IPC sections 354A (sexual harassment), 204 (destruction of evidence) and 214 (offering gifts to shield oneself from punishment) in its chargesheet filed on June 27, according to media reports.
Yediyurappa is accused of molesting a 17-year-old girl in February when she and her mother visited his home seeking his help in resolving an earlier case of sexual assault against her.
The CID also accuses him as well as three others of bribing the girl and her mother to buy their silence.
He denies the charges.
Police in Karnataka registered an FIR in March and the case was transferred to the CID soon afterwards.
The fast-track court issued a non-bailable arrest warrant against Yediyurappa on June 13, but on the next day, the Karnataka high court restrained the CID from detaining or arresting Yediyurappa.
It did direct him to appear before the CID for questioning on June 17. He was reportedly at the CID’s office for over three hours.
Later that month, the high court extended the interim protection it granted to him by two weeks. It will expire on July 12.
The complainant in the case – the girl’s mother – died in a Bengaluru hospital in May reportedly due to complications from lung cancer.
Yediyurappa has been Karnataka chief minister four times. His latest term in office, which lasted for a little over two years, ended in 2021.
The survivor’s mother, who hailed from Karnataka’s Lingayat community, approached Yediyurappa for help because he is a prominent leader of that community, The News Minute reported.
