Mother of minor girl who accused Yediyurappa of sexual assault dies

Well-placed police sources confirmed to DH that the 54-year-old woman succumbed due to lung complications at Nano Hospitals within the Hulimavu police station limits in southeastern Bengaluru late at night on May 26.

Bengaluru: The woman who had accused former chief minister and senior BJP leader B S Yediyurappa of sexually abusing her minor daughter died at a private hospital on Sunday.

Well-placed police sources confirmed to DH that the 54-year-old woman succumbed late at night on May 26 due to lung complications at Nano Hospitals in Hulimavu police station limits in southeastern Bengaluru.

A source in the know said that the woman was an advanced cancer patient. "She visited the hospital complaining of breathing issues and later succumbed,” the source added.

The woman is survived by her 17-year-old daughter and a son.

The case under the Protection Of Children from Sexual Offences (Pocso) Act was registered on March 14 at the Sadashivanagar police station after the woman accused Yediyurappa of sexually abusing her minor daughter when they visited his house at Dollars Colony on February 2 seeking assistance in previous cases of sexual abuse. Yediyurappa was also booked under IPC Section 354A (sexual harassment).

"We went to Yediurappa’s house to seek his help in getting justice for my daughter who's a rape victim. He heard us for a few minutes and later took my daughter to a room and molested her," the woman had alleged in her complaint, which noted that she was afraid and hence delayed approaching the police.

She claimed that she visited Yediyurappa for the case to be transferred to a Special Investigation Team (SIT). The senior BJP leader has categorically denied the accusations.

The state government later transferred the case to the Criminal Investigation Department (CID). So far, the CID has recorded the statement of the woman and her daughter under Section 164 of the Code of Criminal Procedure (CrPC) and collected voice samples of Yediyurappa.