The 67-yr-old from south Mumbai returns to the Chandanwadi spot where schoolgirl was accosted, and catches the knife-wielding pervert with the help of passers-by
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A 67-year-old grandmother from south Mumbai taught a hard lesson to a stalker who molested her granddaughter on her way home from school. The gutsy granny tracked down the pervert, thrashed him and ensured that he was put behind the bars, even as passers-by watched agape.
The survivor, a 14-year-old, was returning home from school when the accused accosted her and sexually harassed her at knifepoint on a busy road in Chandanwadi, Marine Lines.
It was around noon on Monday when the incident took place. Her friends had left in a bus, and the Std IX student was walking alone. All of a sudden, a stranger - later identified as Premkumar Subhash Yadav (19) - came and stood before her.
The accused, Premkumar Subhash Yadav (19), had been stalking her for a few days
Scary encounter
"He just stood before me and winked. Before I could gather myself, he grabbed my hand. I was shocked," she told the police. "He flashed a small knife at me and made a slicing motion across his neck, threatening me to go with him," she added.
Unable to stand the humiliation, the girl struggled free and ran home. "All I remember is hearing his laughter," she said.
When she got home and shut the door, her grandmother noticed something was off. The elderly woman gave the teen a glass of water to help calm her down, then asked what was wrong.
"She was shivering with fear. When I asked her what had happened, all she could tell me was that some guy had grabbed her hand on the road. I was shattered to see her in that state," the senior citizen told the police later.
Old is bold
Not wasting a moment, the grandmother took hold the child's hand and told her to lead her to the spot where this had happened. When they got there, the girl pointed out the pervert across the road. The woman crossed the road and stood before the boy, landing a tight slap across his cheek. She then held him by the collar and slapped him some more.
Passers-by were stunned by the exchange, and soon, a crowd began to gather around and people asked the grandmother what had happened. She narrated her granddaughter's ordeal to them. During this conversation, the accused tried to escape her grasp, she held tight. When she had finished her story, the incensed crowd overpowered the boy until the police got there.
"A call was received by the main control room, reporting the ruckus at Chandanwadi. A mobile van was sent to the spot by the Azad Maidan police, who detained the boy and took him to the police station. We had to rescue him from the crowd; they were beating him black and blue. He suffered a head injury," said an officer.
New to the city
"The boy has been identified as Premkumar Subhash Yadav (19). He claims that he is from Khushi Nagar, Uttar Pradesh, and had just come to the city a couple of days ago," said another officer from Azad Maidan police station. Yadav also claimed that he is working at a local catering company, but couldn't name the company.
"The victim told her grandmother that the pervert had been stalking her since a few days, and had also given her a flying kiss, but she never imagined he would be bold enough to grab her hand," the cop added.
The pervert was booked under sections 354A (sexual harassment), 354D (stalking), 506(2) (criminal intimidation), and 34 (common intention) of the IPC, along with sections of the Protection of Children from Sexual Offences (POCSO) Act. He was produced in court and remanded in police custody till March 24.
"The girl said that the accused was accompanied two others. We are now searching for these people. We are also looking for clues from CCTV footage from around the spot," added the officer.
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