Karnataka Congress MLA and former Minister Vinay Kulkarni has been booked on allegations of rape, kidnapping and criminal intimidation, the police said on Wednesday. According to the police, the FIR was lodged after a 34-year-old social worker victim filed a complaint at the Sanjay Nagar Police Station. In her complaint, she accused the Dharwad MLA of making phone and video calls to her, they said.
The police said that the MLA has been named as the accused number one along with his close aide Arjun as accused number two. According to the victim, she met MLA Kulkarni in 2022. She accused Kulkarni of making video calls and having vulgar conversations with her. She alleged that Kulkarni took her to a deserted place near the Kempegowda International Airport in Devanahalli. Following this, he raped and sexually assaulted her inside the car. After the incident, Kulkarni threatened the woman not to speak about it to anyone.
Based on her complaint, the police registered a case against the MLA under the IT Act and other sections, including that of rape, kidnapping, criminal intimidation, causing the disappearance of evidence, and voluntarily causing hurt and assault or criminal force to the woman with intent to outrage her modesty.