Kerala court grants police 3-day custody of MLA Mamkootathil
A Kerala court on Tuesday granted three-day police custody of expelled Congress MLA Rahul Mamkootathil in connection with a third rape case. Thiruvalla Judicial First-Class Magistrate Court Judge Arundhanthi Dileep has granted the police custody of Rahul till January 15.
He was arrested by the police on Sunday, January 11, from a hotel in Palakkad in connection with a rape case registered on a Thiruvalla-based NRI woman’s complaint that he sexually assaulted her in 2024. The woman filed a complaint through email from Spain.
The MLA has denied the allegations, maintaining that his relationship with the complainant was consensual and that he was unaware that the woman was married. He further added that he immediately terminated his relationship with the complainant after he came to know about her marital status. He has argued that the entire case was intended to tarnish his public image.
The prosecution argued that custodial interrogation was necessary to recover digital evidence, verify travel records and medical documents in connection with the rape allegations. With the latest case, Mamkootathil now faces three sexual assault cases. In one rape case, a sessions court in Thiruvananthapuram had earlier allowed his plea for anticipatory bail.
