Trainee IPS officer arrested for sexual harassment of co-trainee at Hyderabad police academy
HYDERABAD: A trainee IPS officer accused of sexually harassing a woman co-trainee at the Sardar Vallabhbhai Patel National Police Academy (SVPNPA) in Hyderabad was arrested on Wednesday, nearly two weeks after a case was registered against him on charges including sexual harassment, stalking and criminal intimidation, police said.“He (trainee IPS officer) has been arrested and produced before a city court,” police sources told PTI.A case was registered against the 32-year-old trainee IPS officer on July 18 for allegedly stalking and sexually harassing a woman trainee officer at the Sardar Vallabhbhai Patel National Police Academy (SVPNPA) in Hyderabad.The accused was questioned by police in connection with the case on Tuesday.Following the registration of the FIR, the trainee officer had claimed in a social media post that the complaint and rumours against him were “baseless”.According to the complaint, the 30-year-old woman trainee IPS officer alleged that the accused had been harassing her since June 23 by sending sexually abusive messages through an instant messaging application and making derogatory remarks about her at the academy in the presence of her friends.She further alleged that he falsely accused her of having a sexual relationship with another trainee officer, pressured her to admit to such a relationship and verbally abused her.The complainant also alleged that on July 9, the accused wrongfully restrained her, forcibly took her to his room, grabbed her by the hair, attempted to strangle her, held a knife to her neck and prevented her from leaving the room.She further accused him of recording a private video of her without her knowledge or consent and sending it to her husband in an alleged attempt to blackmail her.Based on the complaint, Attapur police registered a case under relevant provisions of the Bharatiya Nyaya Sanhita (BNS) relating to assault or use of criminal force against a woman with intent to outrage her modesty, sexual harassment, stalking, and words, gestures or acts intended to insult the modesty of a woman.Provisions of the Information Technology Act were also invoked, police said.The accused trainee officer had previously served as a constable in the Andhra Pradesh Police.(With PTI inputs)
