Madhya Pradesh Police on Sunday registered a First Information Report against Bharatiya Janata Party leader Rajendra Namdeo for allegedly molesting and attempting to rape an acid attack survivor in Bhopal, PTI reported. The party suspended the accused for six months after he was detained. He has not been arrested yet.
The state government removed him from the post of the vice chairperson of the Madhya Pradesh Rajya Silai Kala Mandal. Namdeo’s post gave him the status of a minister of state, reported PTI.
The incident took place in November 2017, Additional Superintendent of Police Rajesh Singh Bhadauriya told PTI. “We are verifying the complaint and also looking into why she took three months to lodge it,” Bhadauriya said.
The complainant said Namdeo had called her to a hotel room near the Bhopal railway station with a false pretext. “Namdeo had called the victim to Bhopal [with the promise] of providing financial aid from the chief minister,” police officer Sudesh Tiwari told the Hindustan Times.
The BJP will take any other necessary steps against the accused only after he is proven guilty, party office secretary Satyendra Bhushan Singh told the daily. “The BJP did not spare any time in suspending Namdeo but the Congress has not taken any action against its MLA Hemant Katare who is facing rape charges,” Singh said.
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