The special court of people's representative has remanded Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) MLA Munirathna to 14-days judicial custody on Saturday. The BJP MLA was arrested by Bengaluru police on charges of alleged rape and harassment.
Apart from the BJP MLA Munirathna, six other individuals have been charged in the case. (Getty Images/iStockphoto)
{{^htLoading}} {{/htLoading}}
The First Information Report (FIR) was filed under IPC Sections 354A, 354C, 376, 506, 504, 120(b), 149, 384, 406, 308. Apart from the BJP MLA Munirathna, six other individuals have been charged in the case, including Vijay Kumar, Sudhakara, Kiran Kumar, Lohit Gowda, Manjunath and Loki.
As per the complaint, the incident happened at a private resort under the limits of Kaggalipura police station. The MLA was produced before Justice KM Shivakumar of the people's representative special court.
Munirathna also has complaints registered against him for allegedly threatening a BBMP contractor, demanding bribes, and using casteist slurs.
{{^htLoading}} {{/htLoading}}
{{^usCountry}}
He was taken into custody on September 14 night by Bengaluru police for allegedly threatening a Bruhat Bengaluru Mahanagara Palike (BBMP) contractor.
{{/usCountry}}
{{#usCountry}}
He was taken into custody on September 14 night by Bengaluru police for allegedly threatening a Bruhat Bengaluru Mahanagara Palike (BBMP) contractor.
According to Kolar Superintendent of Police (SP) B Nikhil, the MLA was taken into custody by Bengaluru police with the help of Kolar Police while he was travelling to Andhra Pradesh.
A contractor, Chelvaraju, had lodged a complaint accusing the MLA of harassment and threats. The first case involved issuing a death threat, with four individuals named in the FIR including Munirathna, VG Kumar, Abhishek, Vasanth Kumar. The FIRs include charges under sections 37, 506, 505, 385, 420, and 323.
Chaluvaraju has alleged that Munirathna threatened him by saying, "What happened to Renukaswamy will happen to you." He claimed that the MLA had demanded a commission in connection with a contract.
According to the contractor, he allegedly offered ₹1 lakh, but Munirathna refused and insisted on the full amount.
The contractor further alleged, "MLA Munirathna has threatened me to pay ₹20 lakhs. If I don't pay, he said the same fate as Renukaswamy will happen to me." He also accused Munirathna's elder sister's son of being involved in the murder of Renukaswamy.
Yamini CS is a Senior Content Producer at Hindustan Times with nearly six years of experience in digital journalism. She is part of the India News desk, where she works on a wide range of stories cutting across civic issues, city-based developments, politics, governance, public policy, breaking news, trending topics, and international affairs that have an impact on India. Her role involves tracking fast-moving developments, verifying information from official and on-ground sources, and presenting news in a clear, accessible format for a digital-first audience. A significant part of her work includes handling live blogs during major news events, such as elections, court verdicts, political developments, civic disruptions, protests, weather-related alerts, and unfolding national or international incidents. Through live coverage, she focuses on timely updates to help readers follow complex stories as they evolve. Before moving to the broader India News desk, Yamini was associated with the Bengaluru desk at Hindustan Times, where she extensively covered urban governance, infrastructure, traffic and transport issues, weather events, public grievances, and civic administration in the city. This experience strengthened her grounding in city reporting and sharpened her focus on citizen-centric journalism. She began her career as a correspondent with Reuters after completing a postgraduate diploma in journalism from the Indian Institute of Journalism and New Media. Her early training instilled a strong emphasis on accuracy, sourcing, and news ethics, which continue to shape her reporting style. Outside of work, Yamini enjoys reading across genres, listening to music, and spending time with her family, which help her maintain balance in a fast-paced newsroom environment.
Get the latest City News, local updates, weather alerts and breaking stories from Bengaluru, Delhi, Mumbai, Hyderabad and other major cities across India on Hindustan Times.
Get the latest City News, local updates, weather alerts and breaking stories from Bengaluru, Delhi, Mumbai, Hyderabad and other major cities across India on Hindustan Times.
Home/Cities/Bengaluru News/Karnataka: BJP MLA Munirathna remanded to 14 days judicial custody by Bengaluru court
{{^htLoading}}
Advertisement
{{/htLoading}}
SHARE THIS ARTICLE ON
{{#usCountry}}{{/usCountry}}
Notifications
Get breaking alerts directly from the newsroom
Notifications are on!You'll be notified when news breaks
