India hockey player Varun Kumar accused of rape, booked under POCSO act
Bengaluru, Feb 6: Indian Hockey player Varun Kumar has been booked under POCSO Act after a woman accused him of rape on multiple occasions promising to marry her, police said on Tuesday.
The woman, who currently works as an airline staff, claimed she was 17 years-old when she came in contact with Kumar, an Arjuna awardee, in 2018 while he was training at the Sports Authority of India (SAI) here.
In the FIR, the woman alleged that Kumar approached her through Instagram and insisted on meeting her. He kept messaging her to meet but when she did not respond, he also asked his friends to convince her to meet him. When she met him, he expressed his liking towards her. They remained friends and slowly got into a relationship.
In July 2019, he took her out on the pretext of talking about their future to a hotel in Bengaluru's Jayanagar and made physical relationship with her despite being aware that she was a minor. She resisted but he promised to take their relationship a step further and marry her later.
"She accused him of getting physical with her on several occasions over the five-year long relationship she shared with him on the pretext of marriage." the FIR stated.
Later, he started distancing himself from her and stopped responding to her calls and messages. He even threatened to upload her photos on social media if she exerted pressure on him for marriage. She also accused him of cheating her, according to the FIR.
"Based on the complaint received from the woman, we have registered a case on Monday against the Hockey player under appropriate section of Protection of Children from Sexual Offences Act and sections 376 (rape) and 420 (cheating and dishonestly inducing delivery of property) of the Indian Penal Code," a senior police officer said.
Kumar, who hails from Himachal Pradesh, made his debut for India in 2017. The Himachal Pradesh government had also announced an award of Rs one crore for Kumar after the Indian men's Hockey team won the bronze medal at the 2020 Tokyo Olympics. He was also part of the Indian team that won silver in the 2022 Birmingham Commonwealth Games.
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T'gana RTC strike: Talks between govt, employees successful
Hyderabad (PTI): Talks between employees of Telangana State Road Transport Corporation (RTC) who were on strike and the state government concluded successfully on Friday as the government agreed to the key demands of the workmen.
Following a day-long marathon of talks between the leaders of the employees' Joint Action Committee (JAC) and the cabinet sub-committee, the government announced after midnight that it acceded to the demands, including a merger of RTC with the government, 11 per cent pay revision and elections to the employees' unions.
A committee comprising officials and employee leaders would be appointed over the merger of RTC with the government, it said.
The RTC management has also agreed to address the remaining issues as well, an official release said.
The employees would call off their strike and the RTC buses would hit the roads shortly, it said.
The employees had been on an indefinite strike since April 22 over a series of demands, including the merger of RTC with the government.
Earlier in the day, a driver of the RTC, who attempted suicide on April 23 during the strike, died at a hospital here in the early hours of Friday.
Shankar Goud, a 55-year-old driver, set himself ablaze by pouring petrol at Narsampet in Warangal district when the employees were staging a protest on Thursday in support of their demands.
Goud suffered serious burns, was initially admitted to a state-run hospital in Warangal, and later shifted to a super-speciality hospital in Hyderabad for advanced treatment.
"He succumbed (to injuries) at about 1.30 am on Friday," a senior official said.
The driver’s body was taken to his relative’s village, Muttojipet in Warangal district, for funeral rites.
Tension prevailed in Muttojipet as his family members and RTC employees attempted to take the body to the Narsampet bus station, where he worked, to enable his colleagues to pay their last respects. However, police did not permit this, citing law-and-order concerns.
This led to a deadlock before the funeral could proceed.
Union Minister Bandi Sanjay Kumar criticised the Telangana government for not allowing the body to be taken to the Narsampet bus station.
Kumar, Minister of State (Home), visited Muttojipet village in Warangal district, where the funeral was held, and paid homage to Goud.
“They (family members) want to take the body to the bus depot for five minutes. Is the RTC bus depot in Pakistan or Bangladesh? They are emotionally attached to taking the body there. The government is hurting sentiments and creating fear among RTC employees,” Kumar told reporters.
He also expressed anger at the police for not allowing the body to be taken to the bus station and staged a protest, according to a release from his office.
RTC employees and BJP workers attempted to take the mortal remains in an ambulance to Narsampet, but were stopped by the police.
Later, after discussions with the police, the family members and RTC employees agreed to conduct the funeral in the village.
Sanjay Kumar, stating he would abide by the family’s decision, left the village after the funeral was conducted there.
Transport Minister Ponnam Prabhakar said an ex gratia of Rs 10 lakh, a house, and a government job would be provided to the kin of Goud.
Chief Minister A Revanth Reddy expressed shock over the employee’s death and conveyed deep condolences to the grieving family, according to the release.
The RTC employees’ JAC had earlier announced an agitation programme from April 24 to 29, including silent marches and submission of memorandums to MLAs and other leaders.
