Bakery employee from Kerala arrested for sexually abusing woman, BJP terms incident 'love jihad'

The accused, who works in a bakery in Bangaluru, lured her to the city, laced her juice with sedative and abused her, the woman said in her complaint.
Image for representation
Image for representation

KASARAGOD: Town police have arrested a 24-year-old man from Palakkad for allegedly sexually abusing a 19-year-old woman from Kasaragod.

The accused, who works in a bakery in Bangaluru, lured her to the city, laced her juice with sedative and abused her, the woman said in her complaint.

She also alleged that her abuser had asked her and her family to convert to Islam. He was arrested in Bangaluru and brought to Kasaragod, said police. The alleged incident happened three months ago.

Three years ago, the woman was allegedly sexually assaulted by her neighbour too, she told police in the same complaint. At the time of the crime, she was a minor. Town inspector C A Abdul Rahim said the neighbour would also be arrested soon.

Meanwhile, the BJP in Karnataka has alleged that the incident was a case of love jihad. BJP leader and MP from Udupi-Chikkamagaluru Shobha Karandlaje said in a series of tweets that the young woman filed her complaint to Chief Minister B S Yeddyurappa and Bangaluru city Police Commissioner Bhaskar Rao because the “secular Kerala government” was silent on the case.

 “While the entire family is traumatised, the secular Kerala government, the human rights activists and the intellectuals are conspicuous by their thunderous silence,” she tweeted. However, town inspector Abdul Rahim said it may not be a case of love jihad as alleged.

Three weeks ago, the woman’s father had filed a missing complaint after her daughter went missing. “We traced her to Bangaluru and asked her to return. It was the accused who brought the girl to the police station,” he said. The two had met on Instagram, said the officer.

The woman was produced before the Court of Judicial Magistrate of First Class. “But she refused to go with her parents and told the judge that she was with the person on her own will. The lady judge spent one hour convincing her to go with her parents,” he said. This complaint was filed now and the BJP was giving a communal spin to the case, he alleged. “Also, the accused who was arrested and her neighbour who abused her three years ago are strangers to each other, and not friends as claimed by a TV channel,” he said.

Incident a case of love jihad: BJP

The BJP in Karnataka has alleged that the incident was a case of love jihad. However, Town inspector Abdul Rahim said it may not be a case of love jihad as alleged.

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