BJP MLA Munirathna booked in gangrape case
Bengaluru, May 21 (PTI): An FIR has been filed against BJP MLA Munirathna and his accomplices after a 40-year-old woman accused him of gang-raping her and urinating on her face and injecting her with a deadly virus, police said on Wednesday.
The FIR was registered based on the complaint of a BJP worker at RMC Yard police station on Tuesday, they said.
In her complaint, the woman, claiming to be a BJP worker, alleged that the incident occurred at the MLA's office in Mathikere on June 11, 2023. The complainant alleged that she was taken to his office in a car by his accomplices.
Three accomplices of the MLA involved in the incident have been named in the FIR while the identity of the fourth accused is unknown.
She alleged that after reaching his office, the MLA along with two of his accomplices allegedly stripped her despite her pleas and he even threatened to kill her son if she did not co-operate. Munirathna then allegedly instructed the two men to rape her, the FIR stated.
The woman further alleged that the MLA also urinated on her face and during the incident, an unknown man allegedly entered the room and gave the MLA a white box. He took a syringe from the box and injected her, she alleged.
According to the FIR, the MLA allegedly threatened her that if she disclosed it to anyone, he will not spare her family and will destroy them.
In January this year, she was hospitalised and she was allegedly diagnosed with an incurable virus and she connected dots with the injection incident. On May 19, distressed at what has allegedly happened to her, she said to have consumed pills and fell unwell. Subsequently, she decided to report the matter to police.
The complainant also mentioned about a previous incident before this assault, where the BJP MLA had allegedly influenced others to file false cases against her at Peenya and RMC Yard police stations.
Later, when she was released from jail, the MLA's accomplices met her and assured her that Munirathna would help clear the charges against her and under that pretext, she was allegedly lured back to his office.
The FIR against the BJP MLA and others have been filed under sections 376 D (gangrape), 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 to provoke breach of the peace), 506 (criminal intimidation), 509 (word, gesture or act intended to insult the modesty of a woman) and 34 (common intention) of the Indian Penal Code, according to the police.
There was no immediate reaction from the MLA.
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ED arrests Sandeepa Virk, 'cosmetologist' for alleged money laundering
New Delhi, Aug 13 (PTI): The Enforcement Directorate said on Wednesday it has arrested a woman, who claims to be an actor and a cosmetologist, under the anti-money laundering law in a case of alleged fraud and misrepresentation.
The agency said the purported links of the woman, Sandeepa Virk, with a Reliance Group executive, Angarai Natarajan Sethuraman (President, Corporate Affairs), are also under its scanner. Sethuraman, in a statement, denied any connection with Virk or any transactions related to her.
Virk was taken into custody under the Prevention of Money Laundering Act (PMLA) on Tuesday after searches were conducted against her and her associates in Delhi and Mumbai over the last two days.
A special court sent her to the ED's custody till August 14, the agency said. The woman claims to be the owner of a skin care products selling website named hyboocare.com, which the ED claimed was a "front" for money laundering.
She and her associates are being probed for allegedly exerting undue influence through "misrepresentation" and "defrauding" individuals by soliciting money under false pretences.
According to an Instagram ID of Virk, she is an actor and entrepreneur and the founder of the said website.
The federal agency said in a statement that the woman was also "in touch with" Sethuraman, former director of erstwhile Reliance Capital Limited.
She was communicating with him regarding "illegal liaisoning", the ED claimed, adding that the searches at Sethuraman's residence "confirmed" these allegations.
"Besides, diversion of funds for personal benefit has also been unearthed during the course of the search action," it said.
The ED alleged that public money worth about Rs 18 crore belonging to Reliance Commercial Finance Limited (RCFL) was disbursed to Sethuraman in 2018 by "flouting" prudent lending norms.
The funds were lent under terms that allowed a deferment of the principal amount as well as the interest, with multiple waivers granted and no due diligence conducted, it said.
The ED claimed that besides this, a home loan of Rs 22 crore was provided by Reliance Capital Limited by "violating" the prudential norms. "A large part of these loans are seen to have been eventually siphoned off and remained unpaid," it alleged.
Sethuraman, in a statement, dismissed the allegations as "baseless". He denied any connection with Virk or any transactions related to her.
Detailing about Virk's web portal, the agency said it purportedly sold FDA-approved beauty products. However, the ED said the products listed on the website have been found to be non-existent and the portal lacks a user registration option and is plagued by persistent payment gateway issues.
A scrutiny of the website uncovered minimal social-media engagement, an inactive WhatsApp contact number and an absence of transparent organisational details, all of which reinforce the finding of "non-genuine" commercial activity, the ED claimed.
"These factors, including limited product range, inflated pricing, false claims of FDA approval and technical inconsistencies, indicate that the website serves as a front for laundering funds," it said.
Another social media-hosted bio data of the woman said she is a certified cosmetologist.
The ED said several "incriminating" documents were seized during the searches and the statement of a man named Farrukh Ali, stated to be an associate of Virk, was recorded.
The money-laundering case stems from an FIR lodged by the Punjab Police.
Sethuraman said that the home loan he received from Reliance Capital was granted following due process and was secured by the property offered as collateral.
