Woman Alleges Jana Sena MLA Raped Her, Forced Her To Abort. He Denies Charge

A woman has alleged that Jana Sena MLA Arava Sridhar sexually assaulted her for over a year on the pretext of marriage and forced her to abort, a charge denied by the politician.

The woman, a government employee, in a video statement claimed that the exploitation began shortly after Sridhar was elected as an MLA from the Railway Koduru constituency in 2024. She said that she was taken in a car to an isolated place, where Sridhar assaulted her.

She alleged that she has undergone five abortions over the past year and that the MLA repeatedly tortured and threatened her. She said that he also called her husband to force him to divorce her.

In the video, she also said that the MLA had promised to marry her.

"He said that if you get an abortion, you will survive, your family will be fine, and your job will be fine; otherwise, you know about me," she said.

"I argued that I will not get an abortion under any circumstances. He threatened me for two or three days and later gave me assurance. Okay, divorce your husband, and I will marry you," she said.

Arava Sridhar denied the charge.

"False propaganda and deepfake videos have been circulated about me. I directly ask those behind this: I served as a Sarpanch for three years from 2021. During my tenure, can anyone in my village, neighboring panchayats, or the entire mandal prove that Sridhar has ever done anything wrong or is a bad person?" he said in a video statement.

"Today, I am walking in the footsteps of our Jana Sena Party president and Deputy Chief Minister, Pawan Kalyan garu. Inspired by his dedication to public service, I am working for the people of my constituency, Railway Kodur, trying to emulate at least 1% of his commitment. Yet, such false campaigns have been launched against me," he added.

"They claim I've been doing this for the past year and a half. However, I have been facing harassment for the last six months, and my mother even filed a police complaint about it. I will identify those behind this deliberate attempt to malign me and take necessary legal action through the court," Sridhar said.

There was no immediate reaction from the police.

Andhra Pradesh Women's Commission Chairperson Rayapati Sailaja took note of the incident and spoke to the woman over the phone.