No relief for MP in sex assault case

New Delhi: In a set-back to Bahujan Samaj Party’s (BSP) newly elected Lok Sabha member Atul Rai, the Supreme Court on Monday declined his plea for anticipatory bail in an alleged kidnapping and sexual assault case.

A vacation bench of Chief Justice Ranjan Gogoi and Justice Aniruddha Bose dismissed the plea as court enquired about the number of criminal cases pending against Atul Rai.

“Dismissed”, Chief Justice Gogoi said as lawyer for Rai said 16 cases were pending against him.

Atul Rai is absconding since May 1 when FIR was registered against him in Varanasi by a college student alleging that he had sexually assaulted her.

The court was unmoved even as Rai’s lawyer told the court that the case was politically motivated to thwart him from campaigning during the election.

As court dismissed his plea for anticipatory bail,  Rai’s lawyer sought to withdraw it.

“Counsel for the petitioner seeks leave of this court to withdraw the present special leave petition. The special leave petition is dismissed as withdrawn,” the bench said.

Rai won the Ghosi Lok Sabha seat defeating BJP candidate and the member of now dissolved 16th Lok Sabha. Rai had defeated BJP rival by a margin of 1,22,018 votes.

A vacation bench of the top court comprising Justice Indira Banerjee and Justice Sanjiv Khanna had on May 17, declined to give him relief and allowed him to place on record additional documents in support of his plea.