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Karnataka BJP MLA Munirathna Naidu, is facing fresh allegations of gang rape, as a 40-year-old social worker from Bengaluru filed a complaint accusing him and three associates of sexual assault. The woman has alleged that the incident took place on June 11, 2023, and that she was forcibly injected with an unidentified substance before being assaulted.
According to The Indian Express, the complainant claimed she developed a serious health condition after the alleged assault. She further stated that she was threatened with harm to her son and family if she revealed the incident.
A case has been registered at the RMC Yard police station in Yeshwanthpur under several sections 376D (gang rape), 270 (malignant act likely to spread infection of a life-threatening disease), 323 (voluntarily causing hurt), 354 (assault or criminal force with intent to outrage a woman’s modesty), 504 (intentional insult with intent to provoke breach of peace), 506 (criminal intimidation) and 509 (gesture or act intended to insult the modesty of a woman) of the Indian Penal Code.
Despite the seriousness of the allegations, no arrests have been made yet.
This is not the first time the RR Nagar legislator has been accused of sexual violence. In December 2024, Karnataka police registered a rape case against him based on a complaint by another 40-year-old woman, who alleged repeated sexual assaults between 2020 and 2022.
Earlier in September 2024, Munirathna was briefly taken into custody for allegedly threatening a Bruhat Bengaluru Mahanagara Palike (BBMP) official. He was later released on bail.