SP Leader In Ayodhya, Accused In Rape, Now Booked For Bank Fraud

Ayodhya: Samajwadi Party leader Moeed Khan, already an accused in a rape case, was booked on Thursday for alleged fraud over furnishing incorrect information to a bank, officials said.

The manager of the Punjab National Bank (PNB), whose branch was located in Khan's now-demolished building in Uttar Pradesh, registered a police complaint accusing him of leasing out a hall and room to the bank by providing incorrect plot numbers.

"The bank became aware of this after receiving a notice from the authorities, leading to losses for PNB when it had to relocate," branch manager Shriprakash claimed in his police complaint.

"An FIR has been lodged in the case at the Pura Kalandar police station and further legal action is being carried out," Additional SP (City) Madhuvan Kumar Singh said.

The building from where Khan also operated his bakery was demolished after the authorities said it was constructed illegally. The demolition happened after he and his employee Raju were arrested on July 30 and were accused of raping a 12-year-old girl.

The had become pregnant and later underwent abortion. She was admitted to a state-run hospital in Lucknow for better treatment. The High Court on Thursday reserved its order on his bail application in the rape case.

A DNA test was also done. According to the report furnished before the court, the DNA of Khan did not match that of the foetus though it did match with that of Raju, lawyers said.

After taking the report on record, the bench of Justice Pankaj Bhatia set the next hearing on October 3. In his plea, Khan said he is 71 years old and has been implicated in the present case for political reasons.

Speaking in the UP Assembly on the incident, Chief Minister Yogi Adityanath had claimed that the accused belonged to the Samajwadi Party (SP).

SP chief Akhilesh Yadav had on August 3 demanded a DNA test of the accused, sparking a political row over the incident.

"Without a DNA test in the Bhadarsa case of Ayodhya, the BJP 's allegation will be considered biased," Yadav was quoted as saying in a statement issued by his party.

BSP chief Mayawati then asked how many accused were subjected to DNA tests under the SP rule in such cases. The BJP too stepped up its attack, alleging Yadav had given a "clean chit" to Khan who is linked to the SP.