Unnao rape case:BJP MLA arrested after HC order

Five days after he was accused of raping a minor, who also tried to immolate herself in protest against the failure of the police to act against the culprit, BJP MLA Kuldeep Senger was on Friday arrested by the CBI following a direction from the Allahabad high court.

The CBI, which took over the case on Thursday evening, picked up the MLA for questioning from his residence in early hours of Friday morning. The investigating agency also detained the six suspended cops, who had allegedly connived with Senger and arrested the victim's father on trumped-up charges. The father died under mysterious circumstances in judicial custody.

The HC, which had taken suo moto cognizance of the case, ordered immediate arrest of Senger after being told by the state advocate general that the MLA had been detained and not arrested.

The court also ordered that the bail of two other accused persons in the matter be cancelled forthwith and they too be taken into custody. The court said that it would monitor the case and directed the CBI to submit a progress report by May 2, when the matter would be heard again.

The CBI on Friday quizzed Senger and also some of his family members, according to the police sources here. It also recorded the statement of the victim in Unnao.

The arrest of Senger comes a day after Uttar Pradesh police virtually gave a clean chit to the MLA despite booking him for rape saying that there was not ''enough evidence'' against him.

Five persons, including the MLA's brother and the goons of the lawmaker, had been arrested by the police after the victim's father died under mysterious circumstances in the district hospital, where he was taken for treatment from jail.

The victim has alleged that the MLA, his brother and their some other supporters had gang-raped her after she had approached the lawmaker for a job.

The victim had attempted self-immolation near Uttar Pradesh Chief Minister Yogi Adityanath's official residence on Sunday in protest against the failure of the police to act against the lawmaker but was prevented by some alert cops.

Six police personnel, including the Makhi Station House Officer, has been suspended on charges of laxity. The Opposition parties have demanded resignation of Adityanath on moral grounds.