POCSO case against B.S. Yediyurappa: Karnataka High Court reserves order
Bengaluru: The Karnataka High Court has reserved its judgment on a petition filed by former Chief Minister B.S. Yediyurappa. The petition challenges a trial court's decision to take cognizance of a case filed against him under the Protection of Children from Sexual Offences (POCSO) Act, based on allegations of sexual assault against a minor.
On Thursday, a single-judge bench led by Justice M.I. Arun concluded the hearing after listening to extensive arguments from both sides and reserved its order. This was the second petition filed by Yediyurappa challenging the trial court's cognizance of the matter.
Senior advocate C.V. Nagesh, representing Yediyurappa, argued that the trial court took cognizance of the case based solely on the victim's statement without applying judicial mind. He contended that the trial court failed to follow the high court's earlier directive to reconsider the case afresh.
Arguing for the prosecution, Special Public Prosecutor Prof. Ravivarma Kumar claimed that an audio recording of a conversation between Yediyurappa and the victim's mother had been destroyed. He questioned why Yediyurappa would give ₹2 lakh to the victim if the recording did not exist. Kumar alleged that the co-accused, Arun, had snatched the mother's mobile phone and deleted the uploaded audio recording, but that the original audio still exists on the victim's phone.
Prof. Kumar further submitted that a Forensic Science Laboratory (FSL) report has confirmed the voice in the recording is indeed Yediyurappa's. He stated that Yediyurappa allegedly took the victim to a private room and sexually assaulted her, after which she came out crying. He argued that the trial court had considered these points when taking cognizance of the case.
After hearing the arguments, the court reserved its order and orally stated that a factual clarification would be provided on Saturday.
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NEET student hangs self in Rajasthan's Sikar
Jaipur (PTI): A student preparing for the NEET examination allegedly committed suicide by hanging himself in a rented room in Rajasthan's Sikar on Friday, police said.
According to the police, the student allegedly hanged himself from a ceiling fan using his sister's scarf while one sister was attending coaching classes and the other was in the bathroom.
He had appeared in the NEET UG exam 2026, which was cancelled due to paper leak, they said.
Udyog Nagar SHO Rajesh Kumar said that the deceased, identified as Pradeep Meghwal, was a resident of Kanika ki Dhani village in Jhunjhunu's Gudha Gaudji area.
He had been living in a rented room in Sikar's Jaldhari Nagar area with his two sisters while preparing for NEET over the last three years.
His elder sister later found him hanging and informed the landlord and police after bringing him down, officials said.
The SHO said the body was kept at SK Hospital mortuary, and a postmortem had not been conducted.
The student's father, Rajesh Kumar Meghwal, told police that Pradeep's NEET examination had gone well and the family was expecting him to score around 650 marks.
Former Rajasthan deputy chief minister Sachin Pilot expressed grief over the incident and linked it to anxiety among students after reports of irregularities and paper leaks in NEET 2026.
Pilot said repeated paper leak incidents and cancellation of examinations were affecting students' mental health and demanded a time-bound investigation and strict action against those responsible.
