Bombay High Court quashes case against DCP for insulting woman

MUMBAI: Bombay High Court quashed a case against retired DCP Madhukar Sankhe for allegedly insulting an air hostess, noting the complainant lost interest in prosecution.

MUMBAI: The Bombay High Court recently quashed a case registered against a retired Deputy Commissioner of Police (DCP) who allegedly insulted the modesty of an air hostess last year. A bench of justice Sarang V Kotwal and S M Modak issued the order, which was made available on Sunday, observing that the dispute was personal and no purpose would be served if the prosecution continued. It also noted that the complainant was no longer interested in prosecuting him.

Mumbai, India - September 03, 2021: Bombay High Court at Fort, in Mumbai, India, on Friday, (Photo by Anshuman Poyrekar/Hindustan Times) (Anshuman Poyrekar/HT PHOTO)

The quashed case was registered at the Matunga Police Station on August 24, 2024, against DCP Madhukar Sankhe, who retired from the Worli headquarters in 2016. Sankhe was the secretary of the society where the complainant resided.

In June 2024, the society building was being repainted, and a signboard of a State Bank of India branch was kept near her parking spot. In August, she complained to him about it first. After repeated complaints, he allegedly began shouting at her. When she pointed out that it was an inappropriate way to talk to a woman, he said, “You are not a woman, you are in between,” and spat on the ground angrily.

Feeling insulted by this, she approached the police, and a case was registered against Sankhe under section 79 (uttering any word or making any gesture intended to insult the modesty of a woman) of the Bharatiya Nyaya Sanhita, 2023.

The complainant filed an affidavit stating there was no more animosity or ill-will between the parties.

DCP Sankhe retired from Worli Headquarters in 2016 and had served as ACP Dadar Division.