Harassment case ends in acquittal as cop who filed plaint untraceable for 8 yrs

Hyderabad: A case involving a woman constable who was allegedly faced sexual harassment from a stranger in front of the Hyderabad police control room in 2016, ended in the acquittal of the accused recently. This was after the local police filed a report during trial stating that the whereabouts of the constable — the complainant in the case — were "unknown".

The alleged case of harassment was registered at the Saifabad police station in June 2016.

According to the complaint, the incident took place when the woman constable was on her way home on foot. She was walking towards Lakdi-ka-pul from Nampally when the accused, an auto-rickshaw driver, followed her. When she reached close to the police control room, he allegedly intercepted her, molested her, and tried to force himself on her.

However, when the constable raised an alarm, the accused pushed her aside and fled from the spot.

Following a complaint from the constable, a case was registered under Sec 354 (assault on a woman to outrage her modesty) of the IPC and based on clues, the accused was arrested. Subsequently, police filed a chargesheet in court.

During the initial stages of the case, the woman constable was examined along with the investigating officer. However, later during the trial, as the woman constable did not turn up.

Police filed a report in court stating that she could not be traced and her whereabouts were unknown. As a result, the complaint lodged by the woman constable could not be proved in court.

"Since she was not examined, her testimony and that of the investigating officer appear to be doubtful, and so their testimonies cannot be accepted," the court said. Considering the facts, the court stated that the crime was not proved beyond reasonable doubt and gave the accused the benefit of the doubt, pronouncing him not guilty of the crime.