BJP supporter molests housewife during poll campaign in Kerala
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Thiruvananthapuram: A case has been registered after a BJP supporter allegedly molested a housewife while accompanying a party candidate during a door-to-door local body election campaign here, police said on Saturday.
According to police, the incident occurred on Friday in Edavilakom ward of the panchayat when Raju, a Mangalapuram resident, joined the BJP candidate during the campaign.
After the candidate left the house, Raju reportedly stayed back and asked for drinking water.
When the woman went into the kitchen, Raju allegedly followed her and molested her, police said.
The woman raised an alarm, prompting locals to rush to the scene, after which Raju escaped through the back door, police added.
Based on the complaint, a case has been registered for outraging the modesty of a woman and unlawful trespassing.
Raju is currently absconding, and efforts are underway to trace him, police added.
BJP local leaders said Raju was not officially associated with the party and had accompanied the candidate only because he was familiar with the area.
The local body elections in the state will be held in two phases, on December 9 and 11.
Meanwhile, on Friday, Kerala Police arrested Gopu Paramasivan, Ernakulam district general secretary of the BJP’s youth wing, Yuva Morcha, on charges of assaulting his live-in partner.
Investigators said the two had been living together in a rented house since May 2021. The incident occurred on Thursday when the woman moved Paramasivan’s helmet from an ironing table to the floor. Police allege that the act enraged him, leading to a violent attack in which he attempted to choke her with an electric cable.