Kerala: Congress MLA gets anticipatory bail in rape, attempt-to-murder case

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Congress legislator Eldhose Kunnappilly on Thursday got a huge relief when a lower court in the Kerala capital city granted him anticipatory bail in a rape and attempt to murder case.

While granting Kunnappilly relief, the court asked him to surrender his phone and passport to the police and to be present before the probe officer on Saturday.

Kunnappilly has been on the run for the past 11 days, since a woman approached the police and lodged a complaint against him.

In her first complaint to the police, she had not accused the legislator of rape, but after a few days, levelled rape charges and then again after a few days, she told the police that he tried to push her down from a so called suicide point at the famed beach destination-Kovalam, here.

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The woman had charged that Kunnappilly had taken her to several places, physically abused her and promised to marry her.

The two-time MLA is married and settled in Perumbavur, the assembly constituency that he represents since 2016.

After absconding, Kunnappilly posted on social media that he was innocent and being framed.

The Congress party also found itself in a tight position over the case of its legislator, who went into hiding.

State Congress president K. Sudhakaran on Thursday said the reply of the legislator has come and since he is travelling he is yet to see it and once he reads it, he will speak with seniors in the party and then take a decision.

Incidentally, Kunnappilly in his explanation to the party had claimed that he has done no wrong and the complainant is one who has quite a number of cases registered against her.

On Monday, he failed to turn up to cast his vote for the presidential poll to elect a new president of his party.

Meanwhile, with a big relief coming, Kunnappilly is expected to come out from hiding.

The complainant heard the news of the legislator getting bail, while the police was taking her statement from a rented house of the legislator in Ernakulam district where she has alleged she was taken to by him in the past.

"I don't have anything to say about the news that he has got bail. I stick to my complaints," said the woman to the media.

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