Two Australian women cricketers stalked, molested in Indore; accused held
Indore (PTI): Two Australian women cricketers, taking part in the ICC Women's Cricket World Cup, were allegedly stalked, and one of them was molested by a motorcycle-borne man in Madhya Pradesh's Indore, police said on Saturday.
The incident took place in Khajrana Road area on Thursday morning and the accused was nabbed on Friday evening, an official said.
Sub-Inspector Nidhi Raghuvanshi said the two cricketers had stepped out of their hotel and were walking towards a café when a man on a motorcycle started following them.
He allegedly touched one of them inappropriately and rode off, she said.
According to the First Information Report (FIR), the two women contacted their team security officer, Danny Simmons, and shared their live location with him. Simmons passed it on to the local security liaison officer.
Based on this, the police team was able to reach the spot immediately, the FIR stated.
Assistant Commissioner of Police Himani Mishra met the two players, recorded their statements and registered the FIR under section 74 (use of criminal force to outrage a woman's modesty) and 78 (stalking) of the Bharatiya Nyaya Sanhita (BNS) at the MIG police station.
Raghuvanshi said a bystander had noted the suspect's motorcycle number, based on which the accused, Akil Khan, was apprehended.
"Khan has prior criminal cases registered against him, and an investigation is on in the case," she added.
The Madhya Pradesh Cricket Association (MPCA), in a statement, said it was deeply pained and shocked by the disturbing incident of misconduct and inappropriate behaviour with the two players.
"No woman should ever have to endure such trauma, and our thoughts and support are with those impacted by this distressing incident. This unfortunate event has deeply affected everyone from MPCA, who cherishes the values of respect, safety, and dignity of women," the association said.
It is truly inspiring to see the players rise above this painful experience and continue to compete with courage and determination, carrying the pride of their nation on their shoulders in the match against South Africa, it stated.
"Over the years, Indore has earned a proud reputation as a safe venue for the visiting teams and dignitaries from other fields. It is deeply painful that the disorderly action of one individual has caused such harm and cast a shadow over the city’s image. As the host, MPCA extends sincere apologies to the Australian women’s team for this deeply distressing and unfortunate incident while in our city, known for safety, grace, and hospitality," the cricketing body said.
It added that the local police and administration have consistently demonstrated diligence in ensuring player security during all official movements, and teams were provided adequate security for their visits to venues such as the Mahakaal temple and recreation sites of their choice.
In this unfortunate incident, it is essential to examine whether the players had sought security cover for the movement outside the hotel, or whether the movement occurred in the absence of any request for security, it said.
Cricket Australia also confirmed that two members of the women’s team were approached and touched inappropriately by a motorcyclist while walking to a café in Indore. The team security reported the matter to the police, who are handling it, it said.
Madhya Pradesh Chief Minister Mohan Yadav said in a statement that police acted swiftly and arrested the accused within a few hours.
"This action by the state government and police sends a clear message: women's safety and law enforcement are paramount, and criminals will not be spared," he said.
Indore police, in a statement, said that the security officer of the Australian team filed a complaint, which stated that two women cricketers were molested.
Additional Deputy Commissioner of Police (Crime Branch) Rajesh Dandotiya said after the complaint was filed, CCTV footage was scanned to identify the accused. A massive manhunt was launched and he was arrested within six hours.
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Ex-PM Devegowda warns opposition of electoral losses if they continue to allege 'vote chori'
New Delhi (PTI): Former Prime Minister H D Devegowda on Monday said the Opposition parties would "suffer" if they continue to raise allegations of "vote chori" and create suspicion in the minds of voters by blaming Prime Minister Narendra Modi-led government.
Participating in a discussion on election reforms in the Rajya Sabha, he criticised the Opposition for making a mockery about the Prime Minister "in the streets and on the public platform".
"This (India) is a very big country. A large country. Congress may be in three states. Remember my friends please, by using the words 'vote chori' you are going to suffer in the coming days. You are not going to win the battle," Devegowda said, referring to the Opposition members.
He asked what the Opposition is going to earn by "blaming Narendra Modi's leadership and creating a suspicion in the mind of the voters" through the claims of "vote chori".
"What has happened to their minds? Let them rectify," Devegowda said.
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The former prime minister said that during his over seven decades of public life, he has never raised such issues of vote theft despite facing defeat in elections.
He also cited a letter written by the then Prime Minister Jawaharlal Nehru regarding inclusion of "18,000 votes" (voters) in Kerala.
"Why I am telling this (because) during the Nehru period also, there were certain lapses in the electoral system," said Devegowda, who was the prime minister between June 1, 1996 and April 21, 1997.
He said that the Congress party faced defeat in the recent Bihar elections despite raising the issues of mistakes in the electoral rolls.
"What happened after that even after so much review (of voters list). Think (for) yourself! You got six MLAs," the senior Janata Dal (Secular) leader said.
Devegowda questioned the Opposition as to why they want to make allegations against the prime minister on the issue of the voters list?
"Election Commission is there. Supreme Court is there. The Election Commission has given direction to all the state units to rectify all these things," he said.
Devegowda said people of the country have full confidence in Narendra Modi's government and it will come back to power after the next Lok Sabha elections as well.
K R Suresh Reddy, Bharat Rashtra Samithi (BRS) party's Rajya Sabha member from Telangana, said that electoral reforms are the backbone for a healthy democracy.
He said a large and diverse nation like Indi needs clean electoral rolls.
Asserting that strict re-verification should not become a mechanism for exclusion, Reddy said no eligible voter should lose their right to vote simply because accessing paperwork is difficult.
He said while the concern definitely is on the voters' exclusion, "we should also be equally concerned about the percentage of voting."
"What is happening in voting today? Once the election ends, the drama begins. The biggest challenge that the Indian democracy has been facing in spite of two major Constitutional amendments has been the anti-defection. Anti-defection is the name of the game today, especially in smaller states, especially where the legislatures are small in number," Reddy said.
The senior BRS leader suggested creation of a parliamentary committee "which would constantly look into the defection" and "ways and means to cutting that".
AIADMK's M Thambidurai raised the issues related to election campaigning.
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"Election campaigns are one of the important election processes. In that, political parties must be given the proper chance to campaign," he said and cited problems faced by his party in Tamil Nadu in this regard.
Thambidurai said political parties were facing hardships in Tamil Nadu to conduct public meetings and to express their views to the public.
YSRCP's Yerram Venkata Subba Reddy stressed on bringing electoral reforms at both the state and national levels.
He also suggested replacing Electronic Voting Machines with paper ballots in all future elections.
"EVM may be efficient but can't be trusted. Paper ballot may not be efficient but can be trusted. You need trust in democracy," Reddy added.
