A 33-year-old woman in Bengaluru has complained that she has been left with no peace for months, as a group of men have threatened to beat her and take away her baby.
According to her complaint registered at the Banaswadi police station, on several occasions, the men approached her, followed her around the area and used threatening gestures. On one occasion, her son’s cap was taken away by the goons, and on another day, a man beat her with her stick and left a bruise on her right thigh. Doctor’s reports confirm the injury.
Based on her complaint on 15 January, the police booked a case under various sections under the IPC against three people, including two are partners who run a pub on Banaswadi 80 ft road.
The FIR has been filed under various sections of the IPC including section 509 (insulting modesty of a woman), section 341 (wrongful restraint), section 354 (force used on a woman) and section 324 (using weapons).
The police say they have not made any arrests in connection with the case. However, one of the accused told TNM that he was detained, kept in jail for 3 days and then let out on bail.
The policewoman on the case says, “The victim seems to have become very disturbed by events that have taken place. She kept on saying that people are taking away her baby, but when we went to their house the baby was with her. We have advised that she is taken to the hospital and consult with doctors. We are not able to catch the people involved as one person seems to be in Delhi.”
The victim’s mother alleged that the group is targeting the baby to threaten the victim. “Why would a group of men want a baby? They want to use it as a pawn to threaten her into doing any kind of work that they want to, especially get her into sex work as she is a fair skinned, pretty woman who is very vulnerable.”
The police arrived at the woman’s house on the night of January 21, and threatened to arrest her for issuing a false complaint and raising false alarms. The family is now being asked to vacate from the house they are staying in by the landlady, despite police requesting the landlady not to evict the family. Police have also asked the landlady to install a CCTV on the premises to ensure their safety.