Man assaulted for allegedly stalking minors

Team Udayavani, Aug 10, 2018, 1:13 PM IST

• No official police complaint has been filed

Kundapur: A man was tied to a pole and assaulted after a few minor school girls complained to their parents that he sexually harassed them on August 8^th. The accused has been identified as Javed (36), son of a hotelier.

The accused has been regularly stalking girls and making obscene and offensive gestures at them while they were on their way to school, alleged a local resident.

“Despite the repeated warning, he would continue this habit. Sometimes the girls complained that he would follow them to isolated areas and flash his private parts,” said Jagadeesh, a resident.

On Wednesday, angry residents including women, intercepted the accused at LIC Road at Kundapur, tied him to an electric pole and thrashed him. On getting news of the incident, Kundapur Sub-Inspector Harish reached the spot with other police personnel and detained the suspect.

No police complaint

The residents and the parents of the girls have not filed an official complaint against the man neither has Javed’s family filed any complaint against the mob.

“The angry mob, even as they levelled allegations against him, unanimously decided against lodging a complaint. We were not told who the victims were, else we could have asked them or their parents to file a complaint under Protection of Children from Sexual Offences (POCSO) Act,” informed the police.

Kundapur police have detained Javed. However, the suspect’s family has stated that he is not a criminal but he is “mentally unstable.” They however, did not specify whether he had any learning disabilities.

Kundapur Police have lodged a suo motu case under Section 110 of the CrPC (Security for good behaviour from habitual offenders) against Javed for causing public nuisance and produced him before the Tehsildar. Javed has been let off and is believed to have been sent to one of his distant relatives home.

Taking law into their own hands

This is not the first time that local residents of Kundapur have taken law into their own hands. In 2013, a person with learning disabilities was similarly tied and beaten up for allegedly molesting a girl near Shastri circle at NH 66.