THIRUVANANTHAPURAM: A day after the arrest of Kovalam MLA M Vincent for alleged abuse of a 51-year-old homemaker, the mystery surrounding the incident deepened further with fresh revelations being made by the victim’s kin as well as the accused.
The victim’s sister was the first to rally to the embattled legislator’s defence. She said she could hardly believe the charge levelled against Vincent who was known to her sister since childhood. Besides, the woman said her sister had been battling psychological problems for the past one decade.
The victim, who rubbished her sister’s claims, deposed against her before the police. The police are also likely to initiate a probe against the victim’s sister for purportedly threatening her against lodging a complaint against Vincent. Later, Vincent’s wife Subha also came out in defence of her husband saying he had been falsely implicated.
“She had called up my husband (Vincent) and myself several times in the past. I had warned her not to call up my husband never again. She had been suffering from depression for quite some time now. There is absolutely no truth in her complaint to the police. It’s a conspiracy by a CPM MLA and the party’s local leaders. Though I had complained about this to the state police chief, nothing came out of it. I back my husband,” Subha told reporters here.
Fr Joy Mathias, vicar of St Sebastian Church near RC Street, Balaramapuram, who had brokered peace between the victim and Vincent on an earlier occasion, said the former never told him she had been sexually assaulted. The priest’s statement assumes significance in the wake of reports which said he had made a deposition before the police in this regard.
The police said the MLA and victim had spoken to each other on the phone over 1,000 times in the last one year. They also said the probe is making good progress.
“ The probe is on. We can’t divulge more details,” said S Ajeetha Beegum, Kollam City Police Commissioner, who is heading the probe. The police on Monday will approach the court to secure Vincent’s custody for further interrogation in the case. Also, Vincent is likely to move a bail petition before the Neyyattinkara Magistrate Court.
SIT to probe conspiracy angle
State police chief Loknath Behera has directed the special investigation team (SIT) probing the sexual abuse case against Kovalam MLA M Vincent to also probe the conspiracy alleged by the MLA. Vincent had said the complaint was a political conspiracy by some CPM leaders to end his political career.