E-Paper
Sexual harassment of GMCH student: Accused surrenders in Chandigarh court
The surrender comes a day after the district court had dismissed the accused’s anticipatory bail application
The OT technician, who allegedly sexually harassed a third-year medical student of Government Medical College and Hospital (GMCH) in Sector 32, surrendered before the court on Tuesday and was sent to one-day police remand.
The surrender comes a day after the district court had dismissed the accused’s anticipatory bail application.
The complainant had stated in the FIR that on June 27, she was on evening duty and when she went to the store room to get some medicines, the OT technician, named Kamleshwar, followed her: “As I tried to run away, he held me from the front and molested me. As I managed to get out of the store room, he threatened that he would kill me if I ever complained about it,” the student had complained.
The accused, who is a resident of Mullanpur, was booked under Section 354 (Assault or criminal force to woman with intent to outrage her modesty) and 506 (Criminal intimidation) of the Indian Penal Code on June 28.
In his plea, the accused had alleged being a victim of regionalism and had told the court that a “false” case had been registered against him. He had said that on the day of the incident, the complainant had asked for technical support and rudely addressed him as “bhaiya”. He added that he had only objected to it and sought that instead he be addressed as “sir”. He had also said that his wife worked there as well, so how could he commit such an act.
He was placed under suspension on July 3. A letter issued by GMCH had mentioned that the accused had not appeared in front of the internal complaint committee of sexual harassment of women at workplace, and a case against him was under investigation.
