Rahul Mamkootathil faces increased legal jeopardy after a second survivor deposes before magistrate

Palakkad legislator Rahul Mamkootathil, MLA, appeared to face heightened legal jeopardy on Tuesday (February 17, 2026).

A magistrate’s court in Pathanamthitta has reportedly recorded the sworn deposition of a 23-year-old non-resident Keralite woman who had accused Mr. Mamkootathil of raping her in a homestay after inviting her to discuss their “prospective marriage”. The magistrate recorded her statement in camera and under section 83 of the Bharatiya Nagarik Suraksha Sanhita (BNSS). 

Officials said the Special Investigation Team (SIT) probing multiple rape charges against Mr. Mamkootathil was poised to move the court for the survivor’s statement. 

In early January, the woman emailed her complaint to the president of the Kerala Pradesh Congress Committee (KPCC), Sunny Joseph, MLA, which led to Mr. Mamkootathil’s summary expulsion from the party. 

She also petitioned Chief Minister Pinarayi Vijayan, who referred the case to the State Police Chief Ravada Chandrasekhar. Subsequently, the State Police Crime Branch registered a rape case and filed a report in the Chief Judicial Magistrate (CJM), Thiruvananthapuram. 

Granted bail

Subsequently, Mr Mamkootathil obtained an anticipatory bail from the Thiruvananthapuram District Court. Mr. Mamkootathil’s counsel argued that the relationship was consensual and his client was the victim of a conspiratorial political witch hunt. Moreover, the counsel also “dwelled” on the “belated” nature of the complaint. 

In response, the prosecution argued that fear of social stigma and familial ostracisation had precluded the survivor from filing a complaint immediately. It has challenged Mr. Mamkooathil’s anticipatory bail in the Kerala High Court. 

The prosecution has accused Mr. Mamkootathil of befriending the survivor on social media, coaxing her to the homestay under the pretext of discussing marriage, and raping her. 

Meanwhile, the SIT questioned Mr. Mamkootathil in another rape and coerced termination of pregnancy case against him at the Kerala Police Club at Peroorkada, Thiruvananthapuram. 

Officials said investigators were seeking to recover the mobile phones and other digital devices used by Mr. Mamkootathil to communicate with the complainant. 

An official said Mr. Mamkootathil claimed that he had sold some of the mobile phones or exchanged them for the latest models. The High Court, while granting bail to Mr. Mamkootathil, had ordered him to surrender the devices to investigators, share passwords with them and cooperate with the probe. 

The SIT will report to the court on whether Mr. Mamkootathil was cooperating or stonewalling the investigation. It could also approach the trial court for cancellation of Mr. Mamkootathil’s anticipatory bail if the accused violates bail conditions.