BENGALURU: A 26-year-old woman was sexually harassed and assaulted by a group of men in Jigani, near Bannerughatta, on the soutskirts of the city on Sunday evening, sparking outrage among residents after videos of the incident surfaced online.
Police have detained the prime accused, identified as John Richard, 24, and his father Kanikya Swamy, a businessman. Complaints have been filed by both the parties and an investigation is ongoing.
A senior police officer confirmed that a case had been registered against John and the others under sections related to sexual harassment, assault, criminal intimidation, and wrongful restraint.
The incident occurred between 4pm and 5pm in Prabhakar Reddy Layout near Mylasandra.
According to C K Baba, the Bengaluru District superintendent of police, the group molested the woman and assaulted her. "We have detained two of the accused and efforts are on to nab those at large," the officer said.
The woman, a mother of two and a beautician by profession, had recently moved to that area with her children.
While she was on her way to a nearby shop and was passing by a group of seven-eight men, John — allegedly intoxicated — accosted her with lewd comments. He blocked her way, touched her inappropriately, and assaulted her physically.
Eyewitnesses said the men with John initially tried to intervene, but later allowed the attack to continue.
The woman fought back, but was overpowered and beaten up. A passing two-wheeler rider eventually came to her rescue and took her home.
However, the woman's ordeal didn't end there as John and his associates followed her to her house, jumped over the compound wall and gate, and continued to threaten her verbally.
The woman told the media: "They waylaid me, harassed and assaulted me under the influence of alcohol and ganja. When the public intervened, they were attacked as well. I ran inside the house, but they followed and jumped over the gate."
Later, John's parents arrived at the woman's home and accused her and her male friend, a gym trainer, of assaulting their son.
The couple left only after the eyewitnesses told them that the attack on the woman was captured on CCTV and advised them to leave.
While the woman alleged that police did not register an FIR on Sunday, though she had already lodged a complaint, police claimed both parties had visited the police station and said they would return the next morning.
On Monday morning, the victim once again approached the police after allegedly receiving fresh threats from John's parents.
John's mother, Mary Pushpa, meanwhile, filed a counter-complaint, accusing the gym trainer of attacking her son during the scuffle.
(The victim's identity has not been revealed to protect her privacy as per Supreme court directives on cases related to sexual assault)