Taxi driver arrested for attempting to rape Delhi tourist near Haldwani

Nainital Police arrested taxi driver Deepak Singh Bora for assaulting and attempting to rape a woman passenger after diverting to a deserted road.

The Nainital Police on Saturday arrested a taxi driver accused of assaulting, robbing and attempting to rape a 22-year-old woman passenger from Delhi near Haldwani in Nainital.

Police said the stolen mobile phone was recovered from the accused, and the car used in the crime was seized.

The accused has been identified as Deepak Singh Bora, 39, a resident of Fatehpur Mukhani in Haldwani.

Senior superintendent of police (SSP) Manjunath TC said the woman had arrived in Haldwani by bus from Delhi via Dehradun on March 5, from where she travelled to Kathgodam by auto and hired a taxi to Nainital around 11pm.

According to police, around 1.30am, near Baldiyakhan on the Nainital road, the driver allegedly diverted the vehicle onto a deserted road in Patwadangar instead of heading to Nainital. When the woman protested, the driver stopped the car, allegedly misbehaved, assaulted her and tried to rape her, the officer said, adding that the accused also snatched her mobile phone to prevent her from alerting anyone.

The woman, however, managed to escape and hid in the forest throughout the night, and was spotted by local women on March 6, who alerted the police and took her to the Tallital police station, the SSP said.

Police and forensic teams inspected the scene, and the woman was treated at a government hospital. Based on her complaint, an FIR was registered against the unidentified taxi driver under relevant sections of the Bharatiya Nyaya Sanhita (BNS), the officer said.

“Using CCTV footage, police identified the taxi and tracked it through the GPS system. The driver was arrested in Bhowali,” he said.

“The safety of tourists and the public is the top priority of the Nainital Police. Strict action will be taken against those who commit such crimes,” the SSP said.