Yoga guru molests woman, arrested
Singapore: An Indian yoga instructor here has been sentenced to nine months' jail and a fine of 1,000 Singapore dollars for molesting a woman.
Rakesh Kumar Prasad, 26, was sentenced on Monday after he was found guilty of "outraging the modesty of a woman" and "using criminal force on her", the Strait Times reported on Tuesday. The trial in the court began in 2016.
Prasad, who was trained and certified in Kolkata, reportedly cupped and pinched his assistant manager's breast while she was doing yoga on April 26, 2015.
Despite the woman's resistance and being told to stop, Prasad molested her again in a similar manner.
In his submission, Deputy Public Prosecutor James Chew said: "The victim ... did not leave the class or seek help immediately because she was in a state of shock and disbelief. She felt helpless in that environment and did not know what to do.
"She had felt violated and embarrassed by the accused's actions and was in disbelief that this could happen to her in a yoga class," Chew said.
The court heard that while the woman was walking out of the studio after the class, Prasad grabbed her neck and pulled her backwards. The woman alerted the police the next day.
Defence lawyer Steven Lam pleaded for a nine-month jail term for Prasad and stressed that the touches were "fleeting".
The Indian national, according to a report in Channel News Asia, plans to appeal against his conviction and is out on a bail of 16,000 Singapore dollars.
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Kangana Ranaut's 'Emergency' banned in Bangladesh ahead of release
Mumbai: Kangana Ranaut's upcoming film Emergency, based on the life of former Indian Prime Minister Indira Gandhi, has been banned in Bangladesh just days before its release, reportedly due to political tensions between the two nations.
According to a source quoted by News18, the ban is attributed to strained India-Bangladesh relations rather than the film’s content. The source stated, "The decision to halt the screening of Emergency in Bangladesh is tied to the current strained relations between India and Bangladesh. The ban is less about the content of the film and more about the ongoing political dynamics between the two nations."
The film portrays India’s involvement in the 1971 Bangladesh Liberation War, highlighting Indira Gandhi’s leadership and her relationship with Sheikh Mujibur Rahman, the founding father of Bangladesh. It also depicts Rahman’s assassination by Bangladeshi extremists.
Emergency stars Kangana Ranaut, Anupam Kher, Shreyas Talpade, Vishak Nair, Mahima Chaudhry, Milind Soman, and the late Satish Kaushik. Initially slated for a September 2024 release, the film was postponed after failing to meet Central Board of Film Certification (CBFC) requirements. It later secured a U/A certification with 13 mandated changes.
The film is scheduled to release on 17 January 2025.
