Published May 26, 2026 | 7:27 PM ⚊ Updated May 26, 2026 | 7:27 PM
Eldhose Kunnappilly.
Synopsis: The complainant, on Monday, 25 May, appeared before the court and stated that she had not been subjected to rape, marking a crucial turning point in the case. With the complainant retracting her allegations and key witnesses changing their testimonies, the court acquitted all three accused in the case.
A sessions court in Neyyattinkara on Tuesday, 26 May, acquitted former Perumbavoor MLA Eldhose Kunnappilly and two co-accused in a rape case registered in 2022, after key witnesses, including the complainant, turned hostile during trial.
The complainant, on Monday, 25 May, appeared before the court and stated that she had not been subjected to rape, marking a crucial turning point in the case.
Following her revised testimony, two other witnesses also changed their statements before the court. In total, three witnesses, including the complainant, turned hostile during the trial.
With the complainant retracting her allegations and key witnesses changing their testimonies, the court acquitted all three accused in the case.
Order copy is however, awaited.
The chargesheet submitted by the Thiruvananthapuram District Crime Branch before the court in May 2024 accused Kunnappilly of repeatedly assaulting the complainant.
Serious charges, including rape and attempted murder, were included in the case. Kunnappilly’s associates were arraigned as accused, saying they had intimidated the complainant and pressured her to withdraw the complaint.
According to the initial complaint, the woman alleged that she was first sexually assaulted at a resort at Adimalathura in Thiruvananthapuram on 4 July 2022.
The chargesheet further stated that the alleged assaults later took place at the Congress leader’s residences at Thrikkakara and Kunnathunadu in Ernakulam. Investigators also alleged that he attempted to murder the complainant by pushing her into the sea from a cliff in Kovalam.
The case was registered in 2022 after the schoolteacher accused Kunnappilly of sexually assaulting her during a trip to Kovalam and abusing her at multiple locations between July and September that year.
She had also alleged that an offer of ₹30 lakh was made to her in an attempt to settle and withdraw the complaint.
Also Read: Crime Branch files chargesheet against Eldhose Kunnappilly
