POCSO case: Union Minister's son skips appearance before police, seeks time

Hyderabad, May 13 (PTI) Union Minister Bandi Sanjay Kumar’s son Bhageerath on Wednesday failed to appear before the police in a POCSO case registered against him here, and sought two days time.

The case relates to alleged sexual harassment of a minor girl.

Sources close to the union minister claimed that Bhageerath has written a letter to the Station House Officer of Pet Basheerabad police station, seeking two days to appear. However, police said they did not receive the letter from him.

Police teams continued to search for Bhageerath at different places, a police official said.

A notice was served to his uncle on Tuesday directing Bhageerath to appear before the investigators here on May 13 at 2 pm. “However, he did not appear,” the official said.

Bhageerath moved the Telangana High Court seeking anticipatory bail in the case. The matter is expected to come up for hearing on May 14.

The case was registered on May 8 based on a complaint by the mother of a 17-year-old girl, who alleged that Bhageerath was in a relationship with her daughter and sexually harassed her.

Police had said that more stringent sections of the Protection of Children from Sexual Offences (POCSO) Act were invoked in the case. PTI VVK SJR VVK KH