Amreli, Gujarat:
A woman member of a village panchayat in Gujarat's Amreli district has alleged that she was gang-raped by a BJP MLA and 17 others six months ago, police said today.
The allegation has been made by the husband of the woman, a member of the Dhari village panchayat, in two applications submitted to the police.
The victim's husband has given two applications in which he has alleged that 18 persons, including Dhari BJP MLA Manshukh Bhuva, had gang raped his wife six months ago, Amreli Superintendent of Police H R Muliyana told PTI.
In the applications, only six persons have been named, while 12 others have been shown as unidentified, he said.
"Since the incident, as claimed by the complainant, took place six months ago, we need to first verify the veracity of the complaint," Muliyana said.
"We are sending the woman for a medical check-up after which there would be further investigation," he added.
When contacted, the BJP legislator dismissed the rape charge as politically motivated and termed it as a blackmail tactic.
Bhuva said the police were free to investigate the complaint and take action against those found guilty.
Meanwhile, Dhari today observed a bandh against the allegation made by the woman. No untoward incident was reported during the shutdown, police said.