A man sexually harassed a schoolgirl inside his autorickshaw in an isolated area en route to her house from school in Nagpur on Wednesday afternoon. The auto driver was arrested after a video of the incident shot by a local was shared with the police.
In the distressing video, the accused was seen trying to pull the 15-year-old towards him and kiss her forcibly. The girl turned away from him and gestured, asking him to start his auto, showed the video. The next shot shows him starting his auto and moving away from the frame.
After seeing the video, the police went to the area where the incident happened. After scouring through CCTV footage, they saw the driver but his auto number was not visible in any of the clips. But, the officers saw a Mercedes logo on the vehicle which led them to the accused.
“The auto had two Mercedes logos on two sides of it. We went to a nearby auto point where we located the vehicle. When we questioned the man after showing him the video, he admitted to the crime,” said police inspector Laxman Kendre.
The police officer said they ascertained the identity of the girl through the name of the school written on her uniform.
The parents, in shock over the incident as the accused was known to them, are yet to lodge a formal complaint. “Even though the parents haven’t filed a complaint, we filed an FIR on our own,” he said.
“When we called in the parents of the girl they were shocked as the auto driver was known to them and used to ferry the girl to her school daily,” Mr Kendre said.
He also urged parent to keep a close eye on the behaviour of their teenage children. “If you keep an eye on the behaviour, these incidents can be avoided,” he said.
The inspector also advised parents to lodge a complaint in these cases. “There’s nothing to be scared about,” he said.
(With inputs from Sanjay Tiwari).
