Did Padma Awardee Kartik Maharaj Approach Calcutta HC to Cancel FIR Against Him?

Kolkata, July 1 (NationPress) - Kartik Maharaj, a recipient of the Padma Shree award and a monk associated with the Bharat Sevashram Sangha in Murshidabad, has recently faced serious allegations from a woman who claims he raped her over a span of six months in 2013 and coerced her into terminating her pregnancy. On Tuesday, he petitioned a single-judge Bench of the Calcutta High Court to annul the FIR filed against him regarding these accusations.

The petition was admitted by Justice Jay Sengupta, with a hearing anticipated for Wednesday.

Kartik Maharaj was expected to report to the Nabagram Police Station under the jurisdiction of the Murshidabad District Police on Tuesday morning.

On the preceding Monday, the police issued a notice to the Murshidabad unit of Bharat Sevashram Sangha, instructing him to appear for questioning.

However, he did not attend at that scheduled time, and the notice was subsequently delivered to a representative from the Ashram.

On Tuesday, his legal counsel approached Justice Sengupta’s Bench, requesting the cancellation of the FIR before the deadline for his police appearance lapsed.

The petition asserts that the police filed the FIR without performing a Preliminary Investigation and based solely on a complaint about an alleged incident that occurred 13 years ago.

Kartik Maharaj has consistently denied the allegations, claiming that the police actions are mere attempts to harass him.

A political controversy has erupted in the state surrounding the allegations against him.

The ruling Trinamool Congress is spotlighting the issue, accusing the BJP of maintaining silence on the rape case, given the accused monk’s reported ties to the saffron party.

In contrast, the West Bengal BJP has questioned the timing of the complaint, highlighting that it was lodged 13 years post the alleged incidents, coinciding with a period of significant scrutiny for the ruling party due to the Kasba law college rape case.

In her complaint filed with Nabagram police last week, the woman accused Kartik Maharaj of promising her a job at Chanak Adivasi Abasik Balika Vidyalaya, an institution operated by the Ashram, after they met in December 2012.

She reported being accommodated at the school’s hostel in January 2013 with assurances of future employment.

The woman claims Kartik Maharaj raped her at least 12 times between January and June of 2013, and forced her to terminate her pregnancy, threatening suicide if she reported the incidents.

Kartik Maharaj has denied all allegations against him.