SC declines any relief to absconding MP in rape case

The Supreme Court on Monday declined to grant any relief to the newly-elected MP from Uttar Pradesh's Ghosi, Atul Rai, in a rape case.

It is to be noted that Rai remained at large after an FIR was lodged against him at Varanasi's Lanka police station by a college girl on May 1.

A bench of Chief Justice Ranjan Gogoi and Justice Aniruddha Bose asked a counsel appearing for Rai the number of criminal cases the latter faced.

When the counsel submitted that there were 16 criminal cases, according to Rai alias Atul Kumar Singh's election affidavit, the bench said, “We dismiss the petition.”

On this, the counsel pleaded the bench to grant permission to withdraw the petition; which the court allowed.

In the polls that were held on May 19, Rai (36) defeated his nearest rival, a BJP candidate, by over 1.22 lakh votes to win the Ghosi seat, which falls in the state's eastern Mau district.

Case history

The victim has alleged that Rai took her to his home for a meeting with his wife and sexually assaulted her.

On the other hand, Rai had claimed that he was a serious candidate from the SP-BSP alliance and said that the "politically-motivated" case was lodged against him to deter him from campaigning and mar his poll prospects.

Earlier, he had sought an interim protection from arrest and wanted the court to quash the criminal case.

On May 17, the court refused to consider his plea and had allowed Rai's counsel to produce additional documents on May 27 as it was contended that the victim had earlier made identical complaints against others and subsequently compromised.