HC exempts Yediyurappa from personal appearance in city court in POCSO case on July 15

Bengaluru: The Karnataka High Court on Friday adjourned to July 26 hearing on a petition filed by former Chief Minister B S Yediyurappa seeking quashing of a POCSO case against him, and exempted the veteran BJP leader from personally appearing before a Bengaluru court in connection with the matter on July 15.

The Fast Track Court 1 for POCSO Act cases here on July 4 issued summons to the 81-year-old to appear before it on July 15.

The Criminal Investigation Department, which is probing the case, on June 27 filed a charge-sheet against him at the Fast Track Court.

A day later, the High Court had extended its interim order restraining the CID from arresting Yediyurappa after allowing the prosecution to file objections to the petition filed by him seeking quashing of the FIR, and then adjourned further hearing by two weeks, which ended today.

The CID, probing charges against Yediyurappa of sexually assaulting a minor girl, has alleged in the chargesheet that he and three other accused paid money to the alleged victim and her mother to buy their silence.

Yediyurappa has been charged under Section 8 (punishment for sexual assault) of the Protection of Children from Sexual Offences (POCSO) Act and Sections 354A (sexual harassment), 204 (destruction of document or electronic record to prevent its production as evidence) and 214 (offering gift or restoration of property in consideration of screening offender) of the Indian Penal Code (IPC).

The other three co-accused -- Arun Y M, Rudresh M and G Mariswamy who are aides of Yediyurappa -- are charged under IPC Sections 204 and 214.

The case was registered on March 14 this year based on a complaint by the mother of a 17-year-old girl who alleged that Yediyurappa sexually assaulted her daughter during a meeting on February two, at his residence in Dollars Colony here.

Yediyurappa was questioned for over three hours by the CID on June 17.

He has denied the charge and said he would fight the case legally.