Ex-warden alleges harassment by CDPO, says police not registering her complaint

Belagavi: A 30-year-old Dalit woman who resigned as warden of a govt-run working women's hostel under the women and child welfare department has alleged sexual harassment and intimidation by a senior official and claimed police are yet to register her complaint.Vidyavathi, appointed on contract in Aug 2024, has accused child development project officer (CDPO) KV Ramamurthy of repeated harassment during her tenure.In her complaint, she alleged that the officer demanded a monthly commission of Rs 10,000 from her salary and harassed her when she refused. "He asked me to remain in the office until late evening if I did not comply. He also asked me to accompany him on a long drive to Goa, bring alcohol, and repeatedly called me after work hours using obscene language and sending inappropriate messages," she alleged.She further claimed he threatened to terminate her employment if she did not cooperate and made caste-based remarks. The alleged harassment continued for months and forced her to resign, she said.Vidyavathi said she approached women and child development minister Laxmi Hebbalkar. "I met the minister and informed her about the harassment, but no action was taken," she alleged.She submitted a complaint in the last week of Nov 2025 to the Directorate of Civil Rights Enforcement in Belagavi when Ravindra Gadadi was SP, but claimed it was not registered due to a preliminary inquiry. After Gadadi's transfer in Dec 2025, she filed another complaint on Jan 16 with SP Shrinath Joshi. She alleged that even after more than a month, no FIR had been registered.SP Joshi said that the matter is under preliminary verification. He said the document submitted was a petition, not a formal complaint, and lacked an electronic signature required for registering an FIR.Rejecting this, Vidyavathi said officials were misleading the public. "I want my complaint to be registered and investigated. I have evidence of harassment. If the police seize our mobile phones and examine the messages, the truth will come out," she said. "The alleged sexual harassment case involving a Scheduled Caste woman in the women and child welfare department is being taken very seriously. A thorough inquiry will be conducted, and strict action will be taken against those found guilty. I will also personally speak with the survivor," said Laxmi Hebbalkar, minister for women and child welfare department.