Rahul Mamkootathil on the run for 9th day; SIT to expand for second complaint

Palakkad MLA Rahul Mamkootathil, facing charges of rape and forcing abortion, continues to evade arrest even after the Thiruvananthapuram Sessions Court rejected his anticipatory bail plea on Thursday. Kerala Police’s Special Investigation Team (SIT) has been pursuing him for nine days now -- ever since Nemom Police booked him on November 28.

Mamkootathil, expelled from the Congress shortly after the sessions court rejected his plea, is now expected to approach the Kerala High Court on Friday. If that is the case, he would come out in the open only after the High Court's decision. His phone is switched on, but the calls made on Friday morning were disconnected. 

Police sources said the SIT is likely to be expanded following a second rape complaint filed against him. A woman IPS officer is likely to lead the inquiry. Meanwhile, procedures to record the complainant’s statement are underway, and officers believe further investigation is required.

Mamkootathil has been moving between multiple hideouts to stay ahead of police surveillance. On Thursday, police expected Mamkootathil to surrender before the Hosdurg court in Kanhangad after rumours spread that he was hiding in Sullia, the Karnataka town bordering Kasaragod. From 11 am, officers were posted around the court, and checkpoints were set up along the Kanhangad-Panathur state highway (SH 57) leading to Sullia.

By evening, deployment increased as fresh rumours claimed the SIT had detained him in Puttur. BJP and DYFI activists too gathered at the court complex, preparing to protest if Mamkootathil was brought in for transit remand. DYFI members arrived with 'pothichor', saying he had mocked their ‘Hridayapoorvam’ scheme that delivered packed meals to government hospitals across Kerala. “Jail food time is already over today. So we brought pothichor. He won’t have to sleep hungry,” a DYFI activist said Thursday night, barely disguising his contempt for the former Youth Congress leader known for his sharp attacks on Chief Minister Pinarayi Vijayan and CPM policies.

There were also whispers that an influential Congress leader from a border panchayat in Kasaragod, a former district leader, and a Youth Congress functionary were helping Rahul hide in Karnataka. All three denied it.
“Police can check our phones and call records,” the senior-most among them said. He admitted, however, that he spoke to Rahul 15 days ago, seeking a panchayat ticket for the Youth Congress functionary.

“But Rahul rejected it saying he would need the Youth Congress leader across the state, not tied down in one panchayat,” the Congress leader said. The admission made one thing clear: Mamkootathil continued to wield influence and remained part of Congress decision-making, despite being suspended from the party’s primary membership and stepping down as Youth Congress state president in August, when the first allegations of sexual impropriety surfaced.

Back at Hosdurg court, three magistrates stayed on till 6.30 pm, well past court hours, as police waited for Mamkootathil to walk in. By 8.30 pm it became evident the SIT did not have him, nor did he intend to surrender. When Onmanorama called him at 8.34 pm and 8.38 pm, his phone was switched on but he did not answer. By 8.45 pm, it was switched off again. It came online Friday morning but went unanswered once more. The call-disconnect message in Malayalam suggested he could be in Kerala.

Nemom Police registered the FIR on November 28 based on a detailed complaint submitted by the survivor and her family to Chief Minister Pinarayi Vijayan the previous day. The complainant accused the MLA of rape, impregnation through sexual assault, and forced abortion. She also alleged Rahul video-recorded intimate moments to threaten her. Rahul has been booked under several sections of the Bharatiya Nyaya Sanhita, including Section 64 (rape), Section 89 (forced miscarriage), Section 316 (criminal breach of trust), Section 351 (criminal intimidation), Section 329 (trespass), and Section 116 (causing grievous hurt).

He is also charged under Section 66E of the IT Act for violation of privacy. In his bail plea, Mamkootathil argued the allegations were politically motivated and intended to deflect attention from the Sabarimala gold theft controversy. The case against Mamkootathil has since widened. When the first allegations surfaced in August, the Crime Branch formed an SIT to probe complaints of sexual misconduct and cyber harassment, with DySP V Binu Kumar as the investigating officer.

This week, a fresh complaint landed with KPCC president Sunny Joseph, reportedly emailed by a non-resident Keralite woman who accused Rahul of raping her at a resort under the pretext of discussing a marriage proposal. Joseph forwarded the complaint to police. KPCC Samskara Sahithi general secretary M A Shahanas, meanwhile, publicly labelled Mamkootathil a sexual predator.

She alleged even women as old as her mother had troubling experiences with him within the Mahila Congress, and said her own complaint to the then Youth Congress chief Shafi Parambil was met with “silence and sarcasm". After Mamkootathil’s expulsion, she welcomed the party's decision as “bold and strong.” Meanwhile, Leader of the Opposition V D Satheesan accused the government of stalling Mamkootathil’s arrest to extract political mileage from the case ahead of next week’s local body polls.