Thiruvananthapuram (Kerala) [India], December 2 (ANI): Activist Rahul Easwar’s wife, Deepa, on Monday criticised the police action against him, alleging unfair treatment and claiming that the charges against him were inconsistent and mishandled.
Speaking to the media, she said, “It’s very unfair because the police have been dilly-dallying. Their first allegation against him was that he revealed the identity of the victim. And then they realised that it was not true. Then they charged a non-bailable offence that it was a sexually coloured remark. But they didn’t know what exactly a sexually colored remark is.”
She further alleged that the police acted without following proper procedure. “The worst thing is that they didn’t even give us a notice. They just came in one fine evening and told him to come along. Rahul (Easwar) didn’t say he won’t come along or anything. I went with him. Who cooperates like that for a notice, but we cooperated that much. We even handed over the laptop because it’s a laptop,” she said.
Deepa also claimed that the action against her husband was an attempt to divert attention from other developments. “They want to shut him off to take the focus off other things. There is a Sabarimala theft issue and a lot of other things happening; the elections are coming up, so they just want to shut him off,” she said.
Expressing frustration over the denial of bail, she added, “I’m forced to believe so because, after cooperating so much, I don’t understand why bail should be denied. He’s planning to go on an indefinite hunger fast. We will simultaneously move to the sessions court and the High Court.”
Her remarks coincided with Easwar’s own statements earlier in the day, after he was taken into custody on November 30 for allegedly defaming and disclosing the identity of the woman who had accused Palakkad MLA Rahul Mamkootathil of rape. Easwar described his legal situation as a “freedom struggle for men.”
Easwar, arrested on Sunday, alleged that the police violated Supreme Court guidelines while acting against him in the sexual-assault complaint case linked to the suspended Congress MLA. Speaking to reporters while being taken for a medical examination, he said, “This is freedom struggle for men and this is against the Arnesh Kumar verdict. Police is claiming that they have served me notice but they have not served me any notice. This is blatant disregard of Supreme Court verdict.”
His comments came as Thiruvananthapuram Cyber Police detained him following a case registered on the survivor’s complaint, alleging that he insulted her on social media. The detention followed multiple investigative steps undertaken over the past 24 hours in the broader case involving Mamkootathil.
Meanwhile, a Kerala Police Special Investigation Team conducted a joint search and collected evidence from Mamkootathil’s flat in Palakkad on Sunday as part of the ongoing sexual-assault investigation. This action formed the backdrop for Easwar’s criticism of police procedure and his accusations of non-compliance with Supreme Court guidelines.
Earlier, an investigation team from Thiruvananthapuram arrived at the Palakkad Crime Branch office, after which officers from both units carried out a joint inspection at the MLA’s residence and nearby premises linked to the case.
Mamkootathil, the MLA from Palakkad, has been booked on charges of alleged rape, criminal intimidation and coerced abortion, with the FIR listing multiple non-bailable sections. Police have also named his friend Joby Joseph as the second accused.
According to the FIR, the survivor was allegedly sexually assaulted by Mamkootathil on March 4 this year at her flat in Thrikkannapuram, Thiruvananthapuram. He later allegedly recorded explicit videos of her on his mobile phone without her consent after threatening her. The second accused allegedly gave her abortion pills while driving her in a car.
A non-bailable case under eight sections of the Bharatiya Nyaya Sanhita has been registered, including charges of rape, repeatedly committing rape on the same woman, rape by a person in a position of trust and causing miscarriage without consent.
The MLA remains untraceable, prompting police to issue a lookout notice. Officers have intensified efforts to arrest him, conducting searches across Kerala, including in Tamil Nadu.
The case gained momentum after the survivor formally submitted a complaint to Kerala Chief Minister Pinarayi Vijayan on November 27.
Mamkootathil has filed an anticipatory bail plea in the Thiruvananthapuram Sessions Court, with the hearing scheduled for Wednesday, December 3. The Congress party has suspended him from its primary membership, while opposition parties such as the BJP and CPI(M) are demanding his resignation as an MLA. (ANI)
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