Evidence Has Been Tampered With, Alleges Karan Oberoi’s Bandmate

The Bombay High Court will hear the actor’s bail plea on 6 June.

Karan Oberoi and Sherrin Varghese were both part of Indi pop group Band of Boys.

(Photo: Twitter/Altered by The Quint)

Actor Karan Oberoi, who was arrested on 6 May on allegations of rape, remains in judicial custody, after two bail pleas were rejected. In the latest development in the case, the Oshiwara police have arrested the complainant’s lawyer, Ali Kashif Khan, for purportedly staging an attack on her.

Sherrin Varghese, who is part of Indi pop outfit Band of Boys with Oberoi, has come out in support of his former bandmate. In a statement to The Quint, he alleged that Oberoi has been wrongly accused. “The woman has been tampering with evidence and understand that she had timed her FIR in a clever manner,” he said.

According to him, Karan and the complainant had been on talking terms since 2016. Varghese also told The Quint that Karan had filed an NC against the woman in October last year, which was resolved by the police.

“It’s a case of someone being jaded about unrequited love. At least with the help of some messages Karan had saved from her, we are learning how she’s smartly put him in a spot,” Varghese has alleged.

In May, a woman filed an FIR against Oberoi at Oshiwara Police Station in Mumbai under sections 376 (rape) and 384 (extortion). It alleged that Oberoi duped her under the pretext of marrying her and that he raped her, filmed the act and threatened to release the video unless she paid him the money he demanded. On 25 May, she claimed to have been attacked by unknown miscreants who pressured her to withdraw that case. Four people were arrested in connection to the attack, one of whom was found to be related to Ali Kashif Khan upon investigation.

The Bombay High Court is expected to hear Karan Oberoi’s bail plea on 6 June. The police is also likely to question the woman whether she was aware that the attack had been staged by her lawyer.

Actor Pooja Bedi also came to Karan Oberoi’s defence after his arrest and has termed this case as “#MenToo”. “It is unfortunate to see such a kind man being subjected to something like this,” she told IANS in an interview. “The reputation damage, the family trauma is unacceptable to me. There are a number of cases where women are not using the law, they are misusing the law,” she added.