Mapusa court directs crime branch to unseal Fabindia store

Panaji: The Fabindia store at Candolim, which was sealed after the alleged voyeurism incident involving Union HRD minister Smriti Irani, will be thrown open for customers following a local court order. The JMFC court at Mapusa directed the crime branch to unseal the Fabindia Candolim store.
Advocate Raju Povlekar, who represented Fabindia, said that the court has ordered the store be unsealed and released to Fabindia.The crime branch had sealed the Fabindia Candolim outset after Irani spotted a CCTV camera outside the changing room, when she entered the trial room.
On Wednesday, Fabindia had filed an application before a local court seeking an order to carry on business. Crime branch had sealed the Fabindia store on April 3.
Povlekar argued before the court that the licence and lease agreement is valid and the police have no powers to seal it under the CrPC act. The crime branch had opposed the plea of Fabindia to open the store till a chargesheet is filed.
On April 7, 2015, the crime branch had asked the Candolim village panchayat to cancel the trade licence of the store in Candolim in connection with the voyeurism case. The panchayat had decided to take up the issue at the next panchayat meeting.
Four men were arrested by Calangute police on the evening of April 3 and later the crime branch arrested the store manager.
Crime branch has recorded statements of around 30 Fabindia officials in the case including staff of the company who installed CCTV cameras at the store as well as Fabindia managing director William Bissell and chief executive officer (CEO) Subrata Dutta.
Police had registered the case under Sections 354 (assault or criminal force to woman with intent to outrage her modesty), 354 C (voyeurism), and 509 (insult the modesty of a woman), 201 (destruction of evidence) of the IPC and Section 66 E (punishment for violation of privacy) of the Information Technology Act, 2000.