Cop allegedly molests IIT student in Navi Mumbai, held
A police constable has been arrested for allegedly harassing a 19-year-old student of the Indian Institute of Technology (IIT) Bombay in neighboring Navi Mumbai, police said on Saturday.
The incident took place on Palm Beach Road in Sanpada in the early hours of Friday, an official said.
According to the complaint, the woman* came to the Sanpada area from the IIT campus in Powai, Mumbai late on Thursday evening to meet a male classmate.
After walking along Palm Beach Road, they decided to return to IIT by taking the first local train of the day at 4:08 in the morning and killing time by wandering around the area until then.
A police team in a patrol vehicle questioned them around 3 am and left when they showed their IDs and explained why they were there.
Minutes later, an officer arrived on a two-wheeler and began questioning them, the complaint said.
He allegedly asked the student to get on the motorbike and leave the woman behind, but she refused.
When he asked the woman to sit on the two-wheeler and she also refused, the police constable allegedly harassed her and tried to force her to accept the ride.
Also Read: Mumbai: Police Control Room Receives Bomb Threat Call, Man Arrested From Dharavi
The driver of a car stopped his vehicle on the road and came to their aid.
The constable was then taken to the Sanpada police station where the woman filed a complaint.
After she and her boyfriend returned to IIT, a First Information Report under Section 354 (assault or criminal violence on a woman with intent to outrage her modesty) of the Indian Penal Code was registered against the constable.
The FIR was transferred to Sanpada police station after which the constable was arrested.
Blood samples were collected from the accused to determine whether he was under the influence of alcohol, the official said, adding that further investigation was underway.
