Overview
- Vijayapura Rural Police registered an FIR on the seer’s complaint alleging extortion, criminal intimidation and defamation, naming the Bengaluru woman and three others.
- The woman filed complaints in Bengaluru accusing the seer of rape, sexual harassment and blackmail, saying he recorded private videos without consent and used them to coerce her.
- Investigations are proceeding on both tracks, and police have not registered an FIR against the seer on the woman’s allegations.
- The Karnataka State Women’s Commission has asked police to act on the woman’s petition, while the seer denies her claims and says she and associates tried to defame and extort him.
- Details in the FIR include claims of a forced stop of the seer’s vehicle and a Rs 3 crore demand, and the case carries community and political stakes because he heads the Kudalasangama Panchamasali Peetha and has faced prior internal censure.