A woman writer from Kalahandi district accused noted Odia poet and columnist Haraprasad Das on Thursday of sending lurid messages to her on Facebook.
Pallishree Patnaik, a poet and a lecturer in a government college of Kalahandi, lodged a complaint against Das, 71, at Bhawanipatana town police station and accused him of mentally harassing her and sending indecent messages on Facebook.
She alleged that Das befriended her on Facebook and then started sending indecent messages seeking sexual favours, promising to give a leg-up to her literary career.
“He even asked me whether I was sleeping alone and to send him selfies late at night. I will also file a defamation suit against him in court,” Patnaik told mediapersons after filing her complaint.
On August 1, a group of writers had met State Commission for Women seeking action against Das for sexually harassing some woman writers including Patnaik.
Das had refuted the allegations saying that it could have been a hacker’s handiwork and claimed he was inactive on Facebook for long. He even filed a defamation case against eight writers before a Bhubaneswar court.
Das, a former accountant general of Odisha, won the prestigious Moortidevi Award in 2013 for his literary contribution. He could not be reached for comment on Patnaik’s complaint to the police.
{{/usCountry}}Das, a former accountant general of Odisha, won the prestigious Moortidevi Award in 2013 for his literary contribution. He could not be reached for comment on Patnaik’s complaint to the police.
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