Unknown men booked for stalking and molesting schoolgirls in Wadala

Police in Mumbai have booked unknown men for molesting minor girls near their school, following complaints of harassment and threats.

MUMBAI: The police on Friday booked unknown men in their mid-twenties for molesting and harassing minor girls outside their school campus and a nearby bus stop in Wadala.

Unknown men booked for stalking and molesting schoolgirls in Wadala

“The victims who are between the ages 13 and 15, were being followed by the men after school. The men would make obscene gestures towards them and even tried holding their hands. When the girls protested, they would threaten them,” said an officer.

After facing this ordeal continuously, the teenage girls complained to their school authorities who then approached the Rafi Ahmed Kidwai Marg police in Sewri. “We have registered a case under sections 74 (assault or use of criminal force to woman with intent to outrage her modesty), 79 (word, gesture or act intended to insult the modesty of a woman), 78 (stalking) of the Bhartiya Nyaya Sanhita and the Protection of Children from Sexual Offences Act (POCSO) Act sections 8 punishment for sexual assault and 12 punishment for sexual harassment,” said an officer.

During their investigation, the police found that the girls were being harassed for days. The men even grabbed the girls after school hours and forced them to come with them. “We have launched a manhunt to trace the accused and scanning the CCTVs installed in the route,” said the officer.