TVF’s CEO Arunabh Kumar booked for molestation in Mumbai

An FIR was on Wednesday registered against Arunabh Kumar, CEO of the digital entertainment start-up The Viral Fever (TVF), on molestation charges more than a week after a woman anonymously accused him of the same.

An FIR was on Wednesday registered against Arunabh Kumar, CEO of the digital entertainment start-up The Viral Fever (TVF), on molestation charges more than a week after a woman anonymously accused him of the same.

Arunabh Kumar, CEO of The Viral Fever, a digital entertainment start-up company based in Mumbai.(File Photo)

Kumar is at the centre of a controversy after a woman detailed the sexual harassment she faced while working for him as a subordinate in an anonymous blog post. Soon after, other women came forward with similar accusations.

It is, however, unclear on which woman’s complaint the FIR has been filed.

The case was registered at the MIDC police station in Mumbai’s Andheri east as the TVF office falls within their jurisdiction.

“We have received a complaint from a woman and a FIR has been registered under section 354 (sexual harassment) and 509 (Word, gesture or act intended to insult the modesty of a woman) of the IPC against Arunabh Kumar,” a police official said.

The blog post was widely shared on social media leading to several women – both anonymously and otherwise – sharing similar experiences of harassment by Kumar.

Following the outrage, the Mumbai Police encouraged the alleged victim to come forward without fear and promised prompt action. A city-based lawyer, Rizwan Siddiquee, also approached the MIDC police station with a written complaint to file an FIR, but police refused to do so until a victim came forward.