Woman abused, beaten for opposing bursting of crackers on road

A 52-year-old social worker was assaulted in Mumbai after objecting to children bursting firecrackers. The suspect assaulted her and fled.

MUMBAI: A 52-year-old social worker was abused and assaulted in Kannamwar Nagar in Vikhroli after she objected to a group of children bursting firecrackers on the road Friday night. The police said a 30-year-old man got into a heated argument over bursting firecrackers. Things got intense when the woman asked him to come to the police station with her and subsequently, the man assaulted her and fled.

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The police have registered a case based on the complaint filed by Preeti Gaikwad, a resident of Kannamwar Nagar.

“She had gone to the flour mill and while returning home she saw some children bursting firecrackers on the road; 30-year-old man Pradeep Phating accompanied them. The row erupted when she told the teens that bursting firecrackers was disturbing residents of the neighbourhood and disrupting traffic jams in the area,” said a police officer.

Minutes later, Gaikwad returned to the same spot, as she had forgotten to buy some household items and was proceeding to a grocery store. She noticed that the children and Phating were still bursting firecrackers on the road. At that time, Phating threw burning firecrackers towards her. “She somehow dodged it and questioned Phating. He initially told her it was by mistake but soon started laughing, which angered the woman and when she questioned him again, he got into an argument with her and started abusing her,” said the police officer.

The officer said the woman then decided to take Phating to the Vikhroli police station nearby, with the help of a local resident, Niwas Chavan, and stopped an auto.

“Phating accompanied her in the auto, but as the police station came closer, he again got into an argument, pulled Gaikwad’s hair, banged her head on the iron rod and fled. Her earrings also broke in the argument and fell after which she approached us,” said the police officer.

The police have registered an offence under sections 323 (voluntarily causing hurt), 336 (act endangering life or personal safety of others), 427 (mischief causing damage to the amount of fifty rupees), 504 (intentional insult with intent to provoke breach of the peace) and 506 (criminal intimidation) of the Indian Penal Code against Phating, who is still at large.