A watch circular has been issued against Bandi Sai Bhagirath, son of Union Minister Bandi Sanjay Kumar, in connection with the case filed in Hyderabad under the Protection of Children from Sexual Offenses (POCSO) Act over allegations of sexual molestation of a minor girl.
The Cyberabad Police issued a surveillance circular, and officials said on Saturday that search operations were underway to trace and arrest Bhagirath, news agency PTI reported. It is worth noting that the circular was issued to prevent him from fleeing the country.
The development came after the Telangana High Court on Friday refused to grant him interim relief while reserving its order on his anticipatory bail plea. The court said its decision would be announced on May 21.
What is the case against him?
The case was filed on May 8 under relevant sections of the Bharatiya Nyaya Sanhita (BNS) Act and the POCSO Act based on a complaint filed by the mother of the 17-year-old girl.
She alleged that Bhagirat had an affair with her daughter and sexually harassed her.
After the girl’s statement was also recorded, stricter provisions under the POCSO Act were added to the case.
Bhageerath also filed a counter complaint. The girl allegedly invited him to family events and group gatherings. He claimed that the girl and her parents later pressured him to marry her. According to him, after he refused, her parents demanded money and threatened to file false complaints if he did not comply.
Allegations against Bhagirat are mounting
During the hearing in the Telangana High Court, senior advocate Babu Nageshwar Rao, representing the girl, made additional allegations against him. He claimed that four other girls were also harassed and that they would come forward later.
He further alleged that Bhagirat’s father was using his influence to influence the investigation and claimed that attempts to settle the case were made through a person named Sanjappa.
The survivor’s lawyer also alleged that on January 1, the girl woke up in a farm without clothes and claimed that the petitioner made her drink alcohol. He said the delay in filing complaints under the POCSO Act was neither unusual nor legally significant.
He further claimed that the local police took action only after a counter case was filed in Karimnagar and after the Chief Minister personally followed up on the matter. The lawyer also said that two FIRs were registered earlier against Bhagirath and said he cannot be treated as a first-time offender.
During the hearing, senior advocate S Niranjan Reddy, representing Bhagirat, said that the complaint filed by the girl’s parents at Bashirabad House police station was filed after receiving extensive legal advice. He said a careful reading of the complaint did not reveal allegations amounting to sexual assault under the POCSO Act. He also said police later added the section on penetrative sexual assault “with malice intent.”
Public Prosecutor Bali Nageshwar Rao, representing the state government and police, said the survivor was born in 2008 and is currently 17 years and three months old.
He said investigators collected detailed evidence and the seriousness of the allegations only became clear after the survivor’s statement was recorded, leading to the addition of the charge of penetrative sexual assault under the POCSO Act.
With input from agencies
