A 12-year-old girl was allegedly stalked and sexually molested by a drunk police constable, currently posted in Mumbai Police’s Armed Police Force in Tardeo. He was on duty at Arthur Road Jail on the day of the incident. On July 12, the 45-year-old police constable returned to his building located behind Dhobi Ghat in the Mahalaxmi area, police officials told mid-day on Monday.
An official said, “He came home to his bachelor pad, where he lives with four to five roommates. He had consumed alcohol and later stepped out to buy some snacks. Around the same time, the victim, a 12-year-old girl who lives in the same building, was sent downstairs by her parents to buy groceries, and she encountered the constable at the shop.
“He playfully started chatting with the girl and then kept insisting that she accompany him to a nearby temple, luring her with the promise of prasad. However, she refused and continued shopping for groceries. After she finished, she headed back to the building, but as she reached the elevator, the constable had already followed her. He then offered to take her to the building terrace, grabbed her arm, dragged her into the elevator, and took her upstairs to the terrace,” said a senior police official privy to the case.
The constable, originally from Dhule and posted at Arthur Road Jail, allegedly tried to sexually assault the girl, but she managed to scream and escape, running to her house via the emergency staircase. She then informed her parents about the constable, explaining how he had followed and sexually molested her. Without delay, her parents approached the Agripada police station and registered a complaint against him.
During the investigation, police reviewed CCTV footage from cameras installed around the building, near the elevator, and inside the elevator. The footage corroborated the girl’s statement. The constable was arrested from his residence on Saturday evening and produced before a special court on Sunday.
“We have arrested the accused, and charged him under section 74 (assault or criminal force to a woman with intent to outrage her modesty) and 78 (stalking) of the Bharatiya Nyay Sanhita, along with section 12 (sexual harassment) of the Protection of Children from Sexual Offences (POCSO) Act. He was sent for a medical examination for an alcohol test, the report of which is yet to arrive,” said Sanjay Nale, senior police inspector of Agripada police station. The accused has been remanded in judicial custody till July 25.
