The High Court of Karnataka passed the order on July 15 while partly allowing a petition filed by the 55-year-old owner, who had questioned the legality of his arrest.
| Photo Credit: File photo
The High Court of Karnataka declared as illegal the arrest of the owner of a Kodagu homestay in the alleged rape of a 33-year-old U.S. citizen by its housekeeper in April 2026. The court directed the State Government to pay ₹5 lakh to him as compensation.Justice M. Nagaprasanna passed the order on July 15 while partly allowing a petition filed by the 55-year-old owner, who had questioned the legality of his arrest by the Kutta police in Kodagu district. The police had confined him to judicial custody for 14 days till he was released on bail, claimed the petitioner. He claimed that there was no material before the police to arrest him, and that the police had not informed the reason for arresting him. On the allegation that he had forced the survivor not to disclose the alleged incident of rape committed by the 45-year-old housekeeper of the homestay, the petitioner-owner made a counter-claim. He claimed that the woman had not mentioned the alleged rape to him, his wife, or mother, who together manage the homestay. The petitioner had sought quashing of the FIR registered against him.However, the court declined to quash the FIR while stating that an investigation is necessary in the case, while giving him liberty to approach the court again based on the outcome of the investigation. Published - July 15, 2026 03:37 pm IST
