Change your statement: Rape accused threatens survivor, mother

He threatened to kidnap the kids in their family, assault the survivor again or kill her, and harm the family if they did not change their statements, the police said

MUMBAI: A rape case accused on bail was taken into custody on Friday for allegedly threatening the survivor and her mother with kidnapping and re-assaulting if they testified against him in a Sessions Court trial.

Arrested computer hacker and cyber criminal with handcuffs, close up of hands (Getty Images/iStockphoto)

According to the police, the incident occurred on November 28 when the 24-year-old survivor and her mother were sitting in a garden and the accused Asif Shaikh, who runs a coaching institute in the eastern suburbs, approached them, warning them against supporting the prosecution. He threatened to kidnap the kids in their family, assault the survivor again or kill her, and harm the family if they did not change their statements. Following this, the mother, a 42-year-old Govandi resident, filed a complaint with the Deonar police.

“After verifying the allegations, we have registered a case against Shaikh on Thursday under sections 232 (threatening someone to give false evidence), 351 (criminal intimidation) and 352 (intentional insult with intent to provoke an offence) of the Bharatiya Nyaya Sanhita, 2023,” a police officer said. On Friday, the police arrested the accused.

The police said that, in 2023, the survivor, who had separated from her husband and was pursuing divorce proceedings, had initially sought Shaikh’s assistance in her matrimonial case before joining his institute as a student and later as a teacher. He then allegedly raped her, after which a rape case was registered against Shaikh with the Shivaji Nagar police, and the trial is currently underway.