Haryana BJP chief’s son held for stalking DJ, drink-driving; woman narrates ordeal on Facebook - Hindustan Times
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Haryana BJP chief’s son held for stalking DJ, drink-driving; woman narrates ordeal on Facebook

Hindustan Times, Chandigarh | By, Chandigarh
Aug 06, 2017 01:24 PM IST

The accused were arrested from the housing board light point, Manimjara, bordering Panchkula district of Haryana.

Police have arrested two persons, including the son of Haryana Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) chief, for allegedly stalking a senior IAS officer’s daughter.

Vikas Barala, the 23-year-old son of Haryana BJP chief Subhash Barala, and his friend were arrested late on Friday night, police said.
Vikas Barala, the 23-year-old son of Haryana BJP chief Subhash Barala, and his friend were arrested late on Friday night, police said.

Vikas Barala, the 23-year-old son of BJP’s Subhash Barala, and his friend Ashish Kumar, 27, were arrested from the Housing Board light point late on Friday night. They were later released on bail.

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While Barala’s son is a law student at a Kurukshetra college, Ashish is a law graduate. The SUV is registered in the name of Jaideep, a relative of Barala, said the police.

The girl, a disc jockey, who was driving from Sector 9, Chandigarh, towards Panchkula at 12.35am, alleged that two men followed her in their Tata Safari Storm (HR-23G-1008) from the Sector 26 Grain Market area. Both were drunk, she alleged, adding that the SUV pulled up close to her car several times and even tried to block her way to force her to other routes.

She claimed that at one point, the SUV blocked her way and the person in the co-driver’s seat got down and started walking towards her vehicle. She reversed the vehicle to evade them, but they continued to follow her. The girl then called up the 100 helpline and gave the number details of the SUV and her location.

“We have registered a case against Vikas, a resident of Fatehabad, and Bhiwani resident Ashish, under Sections 354-D (stalking a woman) of the Indian Penal Code (IPC) and 185 of the Motor Vehicle Act (drink driving) at the Sector 26 police station. They both are putting up in Sector 7, Chandigarh,” said deputy superintendent of police (DSP east) Satish Kumar.

After their arrest, they were taken for medical examination, which confirmed that they were drunk, said the DSP, adding that after recording the girl’s statement before a magistrate, Section 341 (wrongful restraint) of the IPC was added to the first information report (FIR).

Barala is BJP MLA from Tohana in Fatehabad. A Jat leader, he was appointed BJP chief in November 2014, months after the party formed the government in Haryana.

Though Barala could not be contacted, Jawahar Yadav, chairman, Haryana Housing Board, read out his statement to the media stating that he respects law. “Let the police hold a fair investigation so that truth can come out,” Barala’s statement read.

Facebook posts

Hours after the incident, the 29-year-old woman took to Facebook and shared her harrowing experience of being “almost kidnapped”.

“If this is what women deal with in one of the safer cities in the country, where are we going?” she questioned.

“I’m lucky, it seems, to not be the daughter of a common man, because what chance would they have against such VIPs? I’m also lucky, because I’m not lying raped and murdered in a ditch somewhere. If this can happen in Chd, it can happen anywhere.”

Her father, an IAS officer posted with the Haryana government, wrote on Facebook: “I will be failing in my duty as a father to my daughter if I did not stand with her completely in this matter.”

“...The goons must be punished, and the law must take its course. As would be expected, the goons are from influential families. We all know most such cases of harassment go unpunished and even unreported. We know it’s not going to be an easy struggle.”

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