An IT professional in Hyderabad, who has been allegedly sexually harassing his colleague for months, assaulted her on Thursday after she turned down his advances.
Charan Chowdhary, a 24-year-old software engineer with Infosys had been with working with the victim (23), for about two years.
“Both became friends as they used to work together and also stay nearby. However, for the past seven months, he has been harassing the victim, by saying that he is in love with her and wants to marry her,” Inspector B Prakash at Ghatkhesar police station told TNM.
However, police say that the 23-year-old kept her distance from Charan, who would find reasons to go to her place.
“On Thursday, Charan reached her place and proposed to her again. After the victim said ‘no’, he beat her up. He caught her throat and slapped her. He also banged her head on the wall. She sustained minor injuries,” said Inspector Prakash.
Charan fled after the victim called the police for help. The police have formed a team to nab the software engineer, who is absconding.
“We searched the office and his house in Hyderabad, we got to know that he is a resident of Prakasam district of Andhra Pradesh. The case is still under investigation,” Inspector Prakash said.
A case has been registered under IPC sections 354 (d) (stalking), 323 (voluntarily causing hurt) and 506 (criminal intimidation).
In April alone, Hyderabad City Police’s SHE Team received 86 complaints. 22 cases of these were sexual assault and eve-teasing.
According to National Crime Records Bureau (NCRB), Telangana has recorded second highest numbers of stalking cases in the country with 799 cases registered in 2015.
The state registered 1105 rape cases, 4228 cases of molestation and harassment in 2015.
“There have been several sexual harassment cases in Hyderabad, while 40% of the cases go unreported. In most cases women face harassment from a known person, like a relative, friend or colleague,” says Jameela Nishat, a Hyderabad-based women's right activist.
She attributes the increase in number of cases to more women filing complaints against their harassers.
“The government’s data on crimes against women makes no mention of workplace harassment and marital harassment. Even though there have been several laws for the safety of women, they continue to be unsafe. 80% of the women in Hyderabad feel unsafe when they travel alone at night,” she added.