LJP MP booked in rape case
New Delhi: Lok Janshakti Party MP Prince Raj has been booked on rape charges by the Delhi Police while the lawmaker moved a court here on Tuesday for anticipatory bail alleging that he had been blackmailed by the complainant.
The police said a complaint was filed three months ago by the alleged victim, who is a party worker, and the case was registered on the directions of a court under sections related to rape, criminal conspiracy and destruction of evidence.
LJP spokesperson Shravan Kumar defended Prince Raj, claiming that the allegations against him are a "political conspiracy" to malign him, and suggested it could be a case of "honey trapping".
He said the Member of Parliament from Samastipur in Bihar had lodged a complaint of "extortion and blackmailing" with Delhi Police on February 10 against the woman who has accused him of rape.
Prince had in June tweeted denying all the allegations levelled by her. The alleged rape took place in 2020, according to the woman complainant.
The court's direction came on September 9 and a case has been registered (against Prince Raj) under relevant sections at the Connaught Place Police Station," a police officer said.
Police said that an investigation is underway and nobody has been questioned in this regard yet.
On Tuesday, Prince filed an anticipatory bail application which is likely to come up for hearing before Special Judge M K Nagpal on Thursday.
The application, moved by advocate Nitesh Rana, claims that the alleged victim and her male friend were extorting money and blackmailing Prince and a case had already been filed in that regard earlier, in which the woman and her associate were granted anticipatory bail.
Prince Raj is the cousin of LJP leader Chirag Paswan who, according to police, was also mentioned named in the FIR. The victim alleged that Chirag pressured her not to file the complaint against Prince, the police said. Chirag Paswan had earlier said that he had spoken to his cousin and the complainant when the matter was brought before him. He had asked both of them to pursue the matter with police, he
had said.
