Cab driver stops car on isolated stretch, allegedly molests woman passenger in Panvel

The woman escaped from the vehicle, alerted her family and approached Panvel police before the case was transferred to Airport police for registration.

A 23-year-old woman travelling alone in a cab was allegedly molested by the driver after he stopped the vehicle at an isolated stretch of the Navi Mumbai Airport Service Road in Panvel in the early hours of Sunday. The Airport police have registered a case against the driver under Section 74 of the Bharatiya Nyaya Sanhita (BNS), 2023.

The alleged incident took place on the Airport Service Road in Panvel around 1.35am. (HT Photo)

The incident took place around 1.35am on September 6, when the woman was travelling from Ulwe towards Chinchpada in Panvel. Police said the driver stopped the car, bearing registration number MH-01-EE-9587, around two kilometres ahead on the Airport Service Road and pulled over by the roadside.

Woman alleges driver tried to sexually assault her

According to the woman’s complaint, she was alone in the car when the driver allegedly came to the rear seat and sat beside her. He allegedly caught her hands and tried to forcibly remove her top and jeans, allegedly with the intention of sexually assaulting her. She resisted and raised an alarm, but there was no one around at the time, she told police.

The woman said she managed to get out of the car and called her family members, informing them about the incident. She then went to Panvel police station to lodge a complaint. As the spot fell under the jurisdiction of the Airport police, Panvel police took her by vehicle to the Navi Mumbai Airport police station, where the case was registered.

Driver booked under BNS provision

The Airport police booked the driver under Section 74 of the BNS, which deals with assault or criminal force against a woman with the intention of outraging her modesty.

A police team visited the spot at around 8.50am and conducted a panchnama using the E-Sakshya system. Investigators are checking CCTV footage and verifying videos and the route taken by the vehicle as part of the probe.

ACP Sandesh Naik said, “We will get a clear picture of the incident after inspecting the CCTV footage and appropriate action will be initiated.”