The attack on an interfaith couple in Haveri district has taken a new twist with the woman alleging gang rape and also a political colour with opposition Bharatiya Janata Party slamming the Siddaramaiah government as a 'sleeping sarkar'.
The incident 'is not the question of moral policing', Home Minister G Parameshwara said.
Further, the National Commission for Women (NCW) asked the Karnataka police chief to lodge a first information report (FIR) invoking the relevant provisions of the Indian Penal Code (IPC) against the men who allegedly assaulted the couple.
Seven men who allegedly barged into a hotel room and attacked the couple at Hangal in Haveri district were charged with gang rape after the 26-year-old victim complained that she was sexually assaulted by them, police said.
Three of them, who also belong to a minority community, have been arrested in connection with the January 8 incident, they said.
"On Thursday afternoon, the victim's statement was recorded in front of a magistrate wherein she alleged she was raped by seven men who also abused and assaulted her. So, based on her claim, we have added section 376 D of IPC (gang rape) to the existing FIR. We have arrested three men in connection with the incident so far," a senior police officer said.
"Another suspect is hospitalised due to an accident he met a day after the alleged incident. So, once he is discharged, he will be taken into custody. Our teams are trying to trace the remaining suspects in the case. We have identified all of them," he said.
The woman initially alleged the involvement of six men, but later mentioned other suspects who were their accomplices, he said, adding, the police were trying to secure all of them.
The BJP's state unit hit out at the Congress government over the incident, alleging that a surge in crimes against women in the state reflects rampant lawlessness, and that criminals operate boldly without fear of police intervention.
The party also termed the government as a 'sleeping sarkar'.
When asked about the incident, the Home Minister G Parameshwara told PTI Videos: "It is not the question of moral policing. A lady goes with another person to a lodge. So many people have seen her going along with somebody and they have questioned and now after two days, she comes out and says she was gang raped."
Police had registered a case and arrests have been made. The investigation is going on. Once the probe is completed and the facts come out, police will proceed accordingly, he said.
Parameshwara asserted that the law and order situation in Karnataka is under control and charged the BJP with trying to politicise the issue.
Taking to the social media platform 'X', the BJP alleged that the Haveri incident was a 'dire consequence of the complete breakdown in law and order in the state'.
'The shocking sexual assault in Haveri of a Muslim women (woman) is a dire consequence of the complete breakdown in Law & Order under the @siddaramaiah -led @INCKarnataka government. The audacious act by Muslim youths, brutally attacking and abducting an interfaith couple in broad daylight, underscores the government's failure to ensure citizen safety,' the party alleged.
'The surge in crimes against women reflects the rampant lawlessness, with criminals operating boldly without fear of police intervention. @siddaramaiah's administration has completely failed in addressing this alarming trend, allowing radical moral policing to flourish and jeopardizing the security of the state's residents,' it further alleged.
Rejecting to the BJP's charges, Parameshwara said, "...and BJP wants to create...political issue out of this and they want to take up political advantage. We look at every case. Law and order situation is under control."
Former CM and senior BJP leader Basavaraj Bommai alleged there was a double standard as far as moral policing is concerned by the State government and chief minister Siddaramaiah.
"Earlier, there was a moral policing done in coastal area. The chief minister raised a very big voice against it and they said they will take immediate action and they have taken also. But whereas here in this case, the chief minister has not spoken a word. That's a message to the police department not to act on the merit of the case or as per the law."
"Because it is very evident that initially when this moral policing happened, all the sections which were booked were bailable offences. And the police was denying that there was a gang rape. Even the medical examination done on the first day was a farce. So, they wanted to protect the culprits. All the culprits were nearby. Out of six people, only three have been arrested and others have been let loose (sic)," he alleged.
He further alleged the Haveri Police tried to hush up the matter and were trying to get a statement from the victim that there was no gang rape.
"However, the victim is very bold. She has given a statement in front of the magistrate itself. After that they have booked the case of rape. They should have done it at the first instance itself. The very statement of the victim is good enough for investigation but police were probably under the instruction to not precipitate the matter. They tried to cover up," Bommai alleged.
Meanwhile, in a letter to the Karnataka DGP, the NCW has said the incident is appalling and the commission has taken a serious note of the matter.
"You are, therefore, required to invoke the aforesaid provisions of the Indian Penal Code in the FIR along with other relevant provisions of the law and ensure that a fair and time-bound investigation is accomplished in the matter. All the accused men must be arrested at the earliest. The victim should be provided with free of cost medical treatment," the women's body said.
NCW chairperson Rekha Sharma told reporters in New Delhi that if a response is not received within three days, the women's body would send a team to the southern state.
