Karnataka High Court to hear Yediyurappa POCSO case on Sep 5 as CID seeks adjournment

Bengaluru, Aug 30 (IANS) The Karnataka High Court single bench on Friday adjourned to September 5 the hearing on the quash petition of former Chief Minister and BJP central parliamentary committee member B.S. Yediyurappa in connection with the Prevention of Children from Sexual Offences Act (POCSO) case.

The bench passed the order following the request by the senior public prosecutor Ashok Naik representing the Criminal Investigation Department (CID) seeking time to submit documents in the case. The bench has also continued the interim order directing the police not to initiate action against Yediyurappa.

C.V. Nagesh, senior counsel representing Yediyurappa submitted to the court that, every day one or the other ministers of the Congress government are issuing comments about sending Yediyurappa to jail. They claim that they will get the interim stay vacated and get him arrested. However, now they are demanding for adjournment of the case, he chided.

Counsel Nagesh further stated that the ministers said that Yediyurappa should surrender before the police in the case and he will be sent to the prison. “I challenge the other party to place the arguments now. If it is in the fate of my client to go to prison, let him land in prison,” he submitted.

Replying to it, SPP Ashok Naik maintained that, “we are ready for arguments in the case.”

Earlier, Karnataka Chief Minister Siddaramaiah had said that Yediyurappa should retire from public life after being charged in the POCSO Act case at the age of 82 years.

He had said this while hitting out at the BJP for seeking his resignation over alleged irregularities in the Mysuru Urban Development Authority (MUDA) and allegations of corruption by the opposition parties.

"Yediyurappa has been charged in a POCSO case and it is due to the mercy of the court that he has not been sent to jail as bail cannot be given in these cases. What morality does Yediyurappa have, if he is caught in a POCSO case at this age? The media won’t show much of it,” the CM had said.

“Yediyurappa should retire from public life. At the age of 82, he has misbehaved with a girl and a POCSO case has been lodged against him and the police have submitted a charge sheet, what moral right does he have to speak against me? First, let him retire from public life then we will see about my resignation,” CM Siddaramaiah stated.

BJP state president B.Y. Vijayendra told Chief Minister Siddaramaiah to focus on saving his position and demanded that the Congress party should take back the statements about former Chief Minister B.S. Yediyurappa's political retirement.

“Stop speaking lightly about my father. Instead of asking for the retirement of Yediyurappa from public life, the Chief Minister should resign, admitting to the loot of thousands of crores,” he had said.

The CID, which is probing the case against Yediyurappa, submitted a charge sheet against him in the special fast-track court here on June 27.

As per the charge sheet, Yediyurappa, in collusion with the other three accused, had been charged under the POCSO Act and IPC's sections 354(A) (sexual harassment), 204 (destroying document or electronic record) and 214 (offering a bribe to another person to make them conceal an offence).

The other accused face charges of colluding with Yediyurappa to hush up the case under IPC's sections 204 and 214.

The charge sheet mentions that the complainant had gone to meet Yediyurappa at his residence on February 2 this year to seek his help regarding the sexual assault against her 17-year-old daughter.

Yediyurappa, holding the wrist of the girl, took her into a room in his residence, locked it, and sexually harassed her by putting his hand into her bra and pressing her chest, it said. However, it mentions that the girl resisted and came out of the room. Afterwards, the BJP leader refused to help them.

When the victim uploaded the photo and video on a social media account, the accused had got them called to his residence through other accused persons and gave Rs 2 lakh cash to the complainant. The accused had also got the photos and video deleted from social media and the iPhone gallery.

The victim's mother passed away on May 26 due to health complications in Bengaluru.

Yediyurappa had refuted the charges and said that he was ready to face any case. "A mother and daughter were found near my residence. We did not entertain them out of suspicion. But, once I saw them sitting near my house with tears in their eyes. I called them and asked why they were weeping. They claimed that they were going through a big crisis. I called up Bengaluru Police Commissioner B. Dayanand asked him to help them out. The woman and daughter started talking against me there itself and they were sent out."

"Then the matter had taken a different turn. If we come forward to help, these are the consequences to be faced. I had even given them money after hearing their woes. I will face everything," the former Chief Minister had said.