Bangalore:
A Bangalore court has rejected the bail plea of Pascal Muzurier, the French embassy official accused of raping his three-and-half-year-old daughter.
Mr Mazurier, Deputy Head of Chancery in the Consulate of France in Bangalore, was arrested on June 19 after French officials clarified he was not entitled to diplomatic immunity. He was arrested almost four days after his wife, a native of Kerala, registered a complaint against him.
Medical reports from a private hospital in Bangalore have confirmed rape and sexual assault of the little girl. A detailed report from a forensic lab is awaited by the police to ascertain whether it was her father, who raped her. Earlier this month, a Forensic Science Laboratory (FSL) report of the French official was inconclusive and the Bangalore police had sought further clarifications.
The case has led to widespread outrage and the authorities have been accused of mishandling the case. The mother of the child had demanded the Investigation Officer handling the case be replaced after she was reportedly interrogated for five hours on June 25.