MLA Rahul Mamkootathil Granted Anticipatory Bail in Second Rape Case

MLA Rahul Mamkootathil has been granted anticipatory bail in a second rape case. The Principal District and Sessions Court in Vanchiyoor, Thiruvananthapuram, presided over by Principal Sessions Judge Naseera S., issued the order.

The court had previously postponed the verdict on the anticipatory bail plea to today, providing temporary protection from arrest. The second First Information Report (FIR) against the MLA was registered by the Crime Branch after a complaint from a 23-year-old woman, received via email by KPCC President Sunny Joseph on December 3, was forwarded to the DGP.

Sources indicate that the case was registered under Section 65 (rape) of the Bharatiya Nyaya Sanhita. A team led by AIG G. Poonguzhali recorded the statement of the complainant, a Malayali woman, in Bengaluru. Earlier, on November 28, the Nemom Police had filed a case against Mamkootathil based on a complaint from another woman who alleged that he raped her and made her pregnant. A special investigation team of the Crime Branch is currently probing both cases.

Despite ongoing investigations into both rape cases, MLA Rahul Mamkootathil has reportedly been absconding for approximately two weeks. Police teams, including those in neighboring states, have launched a search for him, but he has yet to be located since November 28.

On December 6, the Kerala High Court granted Mamkootathil interim protection from arrest in the first rape case. This decision followed the Sessions Court’s rejection of his anticipatory bail plea in the same case on December 4, after which he was expelled from the Congress party. Rumors suggest that Rahul Mamkootathil may be in hiding at a farmhouse in Bengaluru.