21-year-old cabbie held for sexually assaulting passenger

Police said the incident occurred on Monday afternoon near Delhi Cantt, when the woman and her family were en route to a relative’s house for Raksha Bandhan celebrations

NEW DELHI

The driver has been identified as Mohammed Yusuf, 21. (Representational image)

A 38-year-old woman who was travelling in a cab with her husband and two-year-old daughter from Gurugram to Delhi was sexually harassed by the taxi driver, police officers said on Tuesday, adding that the accused has been arrested.

Police said the incident occurred on Monday afternoon near Delhi Cantt, when the woman and her family were en route to a relative’s house for Raksha Bandhan celebrations.

The woman, in her statement to police, said she booked the cab from Gurugram Sector 65 to go to Rajendra Place.

“I sat in the front seat with my daughter because she vomits and requires the AC. I requested my husband to sit in the back” the woman said in the police complaint.

The woman said that on the way, the driver was allegedly touching his genitalia, but she ignored him. When they reached Dhaula Kuan, the driver allegedly made “objectionable gestures” and started to unzip his pants. “At this point, I realised, it’s not normal and I complained to my husband. I also called the police,” she said.

After calling the police, the couple deboarded the cab and ensured that the driver didn’t leave till police arrived. When police reached the spot, the couple handed over the man to police.

The woman, a healthcare professional who lives in Gorakhpur, told HT that she was visiting a relative in Gurugram for Raksha Bandhan and took a train back to her city on Tuesday.

A senior police officer said that a case under Bhartiya Nyaya Sanhita section 79 (insulting the modesty of women) was registered at the Delhi Cantonment police station.

“The driver was arrested. He has been identified as Mohammed Yusuf, 21. He has no previous criminal record. He was produced before court and sent to judicial custody,” the officer said.