Kerala rapper Vedan faces rape charges after doctor’s allegations: Reports

Dubai: Malayalam rapper Hirandas Murali, popularly known as Vedan, has been booked on charges of rape following a complaint filed by a doctor who claims he repeatedly abused her under the pretext of marriage.

According to NDTV, the woman approached the Deputy Commissioner of Police (Kochi City) and detailed her allegations, prompting the Thrikkakara police in Ernakulam to register a case on Wednesday night.

She has alleged that the assaults took place between August 2021 and March 2023, at different locations, including Thrikkakara.

Officials said the complaint is being verified and, so far, Vedan has neither been questioned nor taken into custody.

The police clarified that relevant sections of the Indian Penal Code have been invoked as the incidents predate the Bharatiya Nyaya Sanhita (BNS).

The complainant told investigators she first met Vedan as a fan and that their relationship later turned intimate. This is not the first time the rapper has been accused of sexual misconduct: similar allegations had surfaced during the MeToo movement, but no formal case was filed then.

Vedan has been in the headlines for other controversies as well. Earlier this year, he was arrested by Hill Palace police for allegedly possessing small quantities of ganja in his Kochi apartment. Soon after obtaining bail, he was booked again by the Forest Department for keeping a leopard-tooth pendant — an offence under the Wildlife Protection Act. He insisted the pendant had been gifted by a fan and eventually secured bail in that case as well.