‘Me Too’ incident: High Court directs police not to arrest Arjun Sarja
Bengaluru, November 2: The Karnataka High Court on Friday gave a big relief to actor Arjun Sarja who was under threat of arrest.
Following a complaint by actress Shruti Hariharan, Cubbon Park police filed an FIR against Arjun Sarja and facing the threat of arrest. But the High Court Single Bench headed by Justice PS Dinesh Kumar heard the petition filed by Arjun Sarja seeking dismissal of the FIR against him and said that the investigation could be conducted against the actor. But he should not be arrested, the Court said.
This has given a big relief to the actor. Against the FIR, Arjun Sarja has filed the petition before the High Court. After hearing the case on Friday, the Single Judge Bench of the HC posted the further hearing to November 14.
During the hearing, senior counsel BV Acharya said that in order to get publicity by participating in the ‘Me Too’ campaign, actress Shruthi Hariharan has misused the name of Arjun Sarja. Moreover, there was a big difference between the post shared in the facebook and the complaint given to the police. She has read the IPC sections and got the help of advocates before filing the complaint against the actor according to her statement. This would clearly indicate that Shruti has conspired to fix actor Arjun Sarja in this case. This incident was not happened in secluded place. It was an incident happened while rehearsing before the director and producer. But purposefully, she has charged the allegation against Arjun Sarja. Because of this case, Arjun Sarja family faced a lot of embarrassment, Acharya argued.
Arjun Sarja has been working in the film industry for the last 37 years and acted in more than 150 films. He was a devotee of Lord Hanuman and he is constructing a big Anjaneya statue in Chennai. He has the personality of getting respect from elders and youngsters. The actress has conspired to malign the character of Arjun Sarja, the advocate told the court.
After listening to the argument of senior counsel Acharya, the Single Judge Bench said that since it was a three-year-old case, there was no urgency. So, the police should not arrest actor Arjun Sarja, but the police could continue their investigation, the judge said posting the further hearing to November 14.
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CM Siddaramaiah alleges ‘criminal conspiracy’ in Sringeri recount, vows legal action
Bengaluru (PTI): Alleging a “criminal conspiracy” by BJP candidate D N Jeevaraj in the Sringeri Assembly poll recounting, Karnataka CM Siddaramaiah on Tuesday said the outcome was manipulated after valid postal ballot votes in favour of Congress leader T D Raje Gowda were tampered with during the recounting process.
Following a Karnataka High Court order on an election petition filed by Jeevaraj, challenging Raje Gowda’s election, the reverification and recounting were conducted on Saturday.
After the reverification and recount of postal ballots for the Sringeri Assembly constituency, votes polled in favour of Raje Gowda were reduced by 255, the returning officer said.
A report on the matter has been submitted to the Election Commission of India for further action, the officer added.
Congress leader Raje Gowda had won the 2023 Assembly polls from Sringeri by 201 votes, defeating his nearest rival Jeevaraj.
Addressing a press conference in Bengaluru, Siddaramaiah said the High Court had directed the recounting of postal ballots and that irregularities were noticed during the exercise conducted on May 2.
“This is a clear case of criminal conspiracy,” Siddaramaiah said, alleging that valid votes cast in favour of Raje Gowda were altered after being accepted by counting agents of all parties, including Congress, BJP, and JD(S).
He claimed that during the recounting of postal ballots, 255 votes were initially accepted as valid by all agents but were later tampered with by subordinate officials.
“There is a second mark on the votes polled in favour of Raje Gowda. They had accepted these as valid votes. Subsequently, another mark was made by officials. This is a clear case of criminal conspiracy,” he said.
When asked who was behind the alleged conspiracy, the CM replied, “It was hatched by Jeevaraj and others. It is planned.”
Siddaramaiah further alleged that the returning officer acted improperly by declaring the result despite the presence of an Election Commission observer during the recounting.
“Immediately after the counting, the returning officer announced the result. He should not have done so; this is against the law,” he said.
He pointed out that Raje Gowda had originally won by 201 votes, but after the recounting, the BJP candidate was declared the winner by 52 votes.
“The BJP has committed a criminal act of conspiracy. This is not vote chori but vote dacoity,” he alleged.
The CM said a police complaint had already been filed by Raje Gowda’s election agent, Sudhir Kumar, and emphasised the need for electoral integrity.
“We want transparency and free and fair elections. That is what our Constitution mandates,” he added.
Stating that the government would pursue legal remedies, Siddaramaiah said, “We are preparing an appeal challenging the returning officer’s announcement in a court of law.”
Responding to a separate query on elections in other states, the CM said there appeared to be an anti-incumbency factor in West Bengal, while results in Tamil Nadu were “surprising,” adding that Vijay’s party was emerging as the largest there.
Following the victory of party candidates in Bagalkote and Davanagere South, Siddaramaiah expressed confidence about future electoral prospects in Karnataka.
“Even in 2028, we will win the Assembly elections. We will come back,” the CM said.
Siddaramaiah added that he would order a forensic examination into the alleged tampering of postal ballots.
