Rahul Mamkootathil taken for evidence collection; police say MLA not cooperating

Pathanamthitta: MLA Rahul Mamkootathil, arrested in a rape case, was taken to Club Seven Hotel in Thiruvalla on Wednesday morning as part of the evidence-collection process. He may also be taken to his residence at Mundappally, Adoor, for further examination.

The police team left the Pathanamthitta AR Camp with the accused at around 5.30 am. Rahul will remain in police custody until Thursday afternoon, and the Special Investigation Team (SIT) is pushing to collect maximum evidence during this period. However, sources said the MLA is not cooperating with investigators.

Rahul has refused to unlock the mobile phone or share its password with the investigation team that seized it from the Palakkad hotel room. Another phone recovered from his residence reportedly contains only photographs of Rahul and political associates. It is said that a laptop belonging to Rahul is still at his house, but he has not disclosed its whereabouts.

Rahul Mamkootathil has been remanded in police custody by Thiruvalla Judicial First Class Magistrate Arundhati Dileep until the afternoon of January 15. His bail plea is scheduled to be heard on January 16. Although his legal team moved a bail application on Tuesday, the court only considered the custody petition.

Rahul’s counsel, Abhilash Chandran, argued that the arrest was not carried out in accordance with legal procedure. However, Additional Public Prosecutor M G Devi countered that Rahul’s refusal to sign the arrest memo reflected his continued non-cooperation with the investigation.

The MLA was arrested in Palakkad on Saturday night following a complaint filed by a 31-year-old woman working in Canada. After his arrest, he was brought to the Pathanamthitta AR Camp for interrogation.