Kerala: Man slaps woman in road rage incident, gets bail after arrest

Police on Sunday said it has arrested the person who had allegedly slapped a young woman, a video of which went viral, in an incident of road rage in Malappuram district of Kerala. The officer from Thenhipalam police station, who is investigating the case, said that several news channels were incorrectly saying the accused had not been arrested.

Malappuram:Police on Sunday said it has arrested the person who had allegedly slapped a young woman, a video of which went viral, in an incident of road rage in Malappuram district of Kerala. The officer from Thenhipalam police station, who is investigating the case, said that several news channels were incorrectly saying the accused had not been arrested.

He said the accused was called to the station after an FIR was lodged based on the woman and her sister's complaint and thereafter, his arrest was recorded. However, since the offense against him in the FIR were pertaining to Sections 323 (voluntarily causing hurt) and 341 (wrongful restraint) of the Indian Penal Code, both bailable offenses, he was released on bail.

With regard to the women's allegations that the accused person's conduct with them amounted to an attempt to murder and that the police did not include that charge against him, the police officer said only those charges were mentioned in the FIR that was made out as per the complaint and statement made by the women. He said that according to the complaint of the woman, the accused blocked their two-wheeler on the road with his car and then got out and slapped the woman who was riding in front. He further said that based on this complaint, only the offenses of wrongful restraint and voluntarily causing hurt were made out.

The woman who was slapped, while speaking to some news channels, said that on April 16 they had reprimanded the accused for driving rashly, and thereafter, he chased them and after overtaking the two-wheeler, suddenly stopped the car in front of them, thereby, blocking their way. Thereafter, the driver got down and slapped her five times, she and her sister alleged in the complaint. The video of the incident purportedly shows the man slapping the woman once and then driving off from the scene as the locals gathered there.

The affected women further contended that while the police promised them action, the personnel have only booked the accused under minor offenses and not under an attempt to murder charge which was made out from his conduct. The police, on the other hand, has stated that such a charge was not made out on the basis of the allegations in the complaint by the women.

(With agency inputs)