Published Oct 09, 2024 | 12:03 PM ⚊ Updated Oct 09, 2024 | 12:03 PM
Dharwad MLA Vinay Kulkarni. (Supplied)
Karnataka Congress working president and Dharwad MLA Vinay Kulkarni has been booked on charges of sexual assault at Sanjay Nagar Police Station in Bengaluru.
A 34-year-old woman alleged that the former minister threatened and sexually assaulted her multiple times in 2022. She also claimed that Kulkarni’s associate, Arjun, threatened her multiple times, forcing her to comply with Vinay Kulkarni’s demands.
“Arjun not only threatened me but also deleted all the text messages, call records, photos and videos involving Kulkarni,” alleged the victim.
Soon after the allegations came to light, Vinay Kulkarni filed a counter-complaint against the 34-year-old woman who accused him and against Kannada TV channel, Power TV, owner Rakesh Shetty at the Sanjay Nagar police station.
Based on Kulkarni’s complaint, an FIR has been registered against the woman, Shetty, and three others. Denying all allegations, Kulkarni claimed that the woman, Shetty, and others had attempted to extort and threaten him.
He stated, “During a phone call, Shetty claimed that a woman had approached him with sexual harassment allegations against me. He threatened that if I did not pay ₹2 crore, he would broadcast these claims.”
“All audio and videos related to the allegations against me are fake and fabricated to damage my reputation. I have not been in contact with the 34-year-old woman for the last two years,” Kulkarni demanded action.
Vinay Kulkarni is also one of the prime accused in a BJP ZP member murder case.
The Supreme Court has restricted him from entering Dharwad. Despite being the MLA of Dharwad, he does not have permission to visit his constituency.
Gowda, a BJP zilla panchayat member, was murdered on 15 June, 2016, in Dharwad.
In September 2019, the state government handed over the investigation into the case to CBI. In November 2020, the agency arrested Kulkarni after questioning him in connection with the case.
The CBI has alleged that the accused had personal enmity and political rivalry with Gowda who rejected their offer to withdraw from the zilla panchayat elections in 2016.
Kulkarni has denied the allegations levelled against him.
(Edited by Sumavarsha Kandula, with inputs from Mahesh G Goudar)
