The Uttar Pradesh Police on Thursday filed a First Information Report against Bharatiya Janata Party MLA Kuldeep Singh Sengar, who is accused of raping a teenager in the state’s Unnao district, ANI reported. Sengar was charged under Sections 363, 366, 376 and 506 of the Indian Penal Code and under relevant provisions of the Protection of Children from Sexual Offences Act.

On Wednesday night, the state government had asked the police to file an FIR against Sengar, PTI reported. It also asked the Central Bureau of Investigation to take over the inquiry into the alleged rape and the death of the girl’s father in custody.

Addressing the press after the case was filed, Uttar Pradesh Director General of Police OP Singh said that no one was trying to defend the MLA. “All we are saying is that we have to hear both sides,” he said. “Now the case has been given to CBI, they will decide on arrest.” Singh referred to the accused MLA as “mananiya” or “respected” during the media briefing, NDTV added.

The police claimed it had not filed the case earlier because of discrepancies in the girl’s statement, NDTV reported.

The Adityanath government decided to ask the CBI to take over after a special investigation team found lapses on the part of the police and doctors in Unnao, according to NDTV. The government has also provided the girl’s family with security.

The late night developments came after Sengar, with a convoy of 20 vehicles full of supporters, went to the official residence of a senior police officer in Lucknow to claim that he neither raped the teenager nor had a role in her father’s death.

“I just came here to prove that I have done no wrong and would be here anytime the police wants me,” he told reporters, according to the Hindustan Times. Sengar maintained that he was being framed, and told the police, “When there is an arrest warrant, call me.”

Sengar said there were reports that he will surrender before the police and that he had gone into hiding, but added that he went to the police to prove the reports wrong.

Union Minister of State for Human Resource Development Satyapal Singh said he was unaware of how much “he [Kuldeep Singh Sengar] is involved in the case”, ANI reported. “Sometimes allegations are proven wrong.”

Meanwhile, the government has suspended two senior doctors of the Unnao district hospital and announced disciplinary action against three doctors of the jail department for not attending to the girl’s father properly. He died of his injuries on Monday.

Principal Secretary (Home) Arvind Kumar told The Times of India that the decision was taken based on an SIT inquiry report by Additional Director General (Lucknow zone) Rajeev Krishna on Wednesday. The action against the doctors came after Deputy Inspector General (Prison) Love Kumar submitted a separate inquiry report.

The case so far

The teenager said Sengar and some of his aides allegedly raped her in June 2017, and that she has been fighting for justice since. On Sunday, she tried to commit suicide outside Chief Minister Adityanath’s house.

Her father, who was in judicial custody since April 4 after he got into a fight with the MLA’s brother Atul Sengar, died on Monday. The postmortem listed multiple abrasions near the abdomen, buttocks, thighs, above and below knee joints and arms – indicating that his death may have been caused by a physical assault.

On Wednesday, the Supreme Court and the Allahabad High Court said they would hear the case. The High Court also stayed the cremation of the father.