Cops check cabbie’s past record in South Mumbai molestation

The Colaba police are carrying out a background check on the taxi driver who was arrested on Saturday for allegedly molesting a 17-year-old girl.

The Colaba police are carrying out a background check on the taxi driver who was arrested on Saturday for allegedly molesting a 17-year-old girl.

“We are in the process of checking if the driver has a previous record of similar cases,” said an officer from the Colaba police station.

Karam Hussain Bismilla Shaikh, 60, allegedly molested the college student after she hired his taxi (MH-01-BD-8841) from CST to go to Kala Ghoda on Saturday. The girl, a resident of Mohammed Ali Road and daughter of a businessman, studies in a popular south Mumbai college. She was supposed to appear for an exam.

“The girl was sitting on the back seat when Shaikh allegedly stretched his hand behind and touched her inappropriately,” said a sub-inspector at the Colaba police station.

The driver allegedly took a long route and kept circling around the area to spend more time with the girl.

The teenager then told the driver that she did not have change to pay the fare, after which she took him to her college.

“At the college, the girl and her friends caught him and brought him to the Colaba police,” another officer said.

The police will soon record the statement of the girl’s friends, police said. The cops have ascertained that the accused was not drunk at the time of the incident. The taxi belongs to Shaikh’s employer. He has been remanded in police custody by a local court up till Tuesday.