While mob serves justice to 40-yr-old accused, Bandra RPF refuses to take complaint, saying their ‘career will be affected’; offers to beat him up and fine him instead
F Bari was thrashed by the public after another commuter saw what he was doing
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Fighting sexual harassment continues to be double-edged sword for women, as two 19-year-olds discovered when they tried to bring a pervert to book at Bandra station yesterday. While a group of people rushed to help the girls, the Railway Protection Force (RPF) tried to wash its hands off the incident by not intervening on time and later, discouraging the girls from registering a complaint.
Also Read: Female fights back after pervert threatens to share nude pics
Praditi Raut and Akansha Nayk
Akansha Nayk and Praditi Raut, two 19-year-old engineering students were waiting at Bandra station around 3 pm for their train back home. F Bari, a 40-year-old from Orissa who works in an advertising agency, was sitting beside them and browsing through pornographic pictures on his phone. Later, he tilted his phone to show the photos to the teens. When a male passenger sitting on the other side of Bari saw what he was doing, he hit Bari, after which other co-passengers also thrashed him.
RPF’s late intervention
While mob justice was being served, the RPF came to the spot 15 minutes later. Even then, they were unable to trace the accused’s phone, which held clinching evidence against him, as someone stole it in the chaos. This reporter, who was there, noticed that the constables were utterly confused about the phone’s whereabouts. Later, when the girls approached the Bandra RPF to file a complaint, the RPF refused, citing there was no evidence.
Read Story: US woman takes to Twitter to nab man who masturbated at her in South Mumbai
Showed pics thrice
Speaking to mid-day, the girls stated how Bari showed pornographic pictures to them. “First of all, no one can see such photographs in public. Secondly, he wasn’t just seeing them, he was showing them to us. Not once, but thrice, he showed the pictures to us,” said Akansha.
Meanwhile, Bari said that a friend sent him the video, which he was watching by himself on his phone. “I didn’t show it to them. I was just checking it on my phone.”
Don’t file complaint
When the girls approached RPF to file the complaint, the police initially told them that if they file a complaint, they might have to go to court as witness, and it would affect their careers. So they agreed not to file the complaint. In return, the police thrashed the accused for his indecency.
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