Mumbai: 20-year-old woman fights back after sexual assault in train; accused held within hours

The incident drew strong reaction from the Opposition in Maharashtra with NCP leader Ajit Pawar expressing anger and demanding swift punishment for the culprit.

Mumbai:A 20-year-old female college student, who was allegedly sexually assaulted by a man on board a moving suburban train in Mumbai, courageously fought back her attacker and forced him to flee, police said on Thursday. The accused, a 40-year-old labourer from Kisanganj in Bihar identified as Nawaju Karim Shaikh, was arrested within four hours of the registration of an offence after the incident that took place on the Harbour Line corridor of the Central Railway on Wednesday morning, they said. He has been charged with rape.

The incident drew strong reaction from the Opposition in Maharashtra with NCP leader Ajit Pawar expressing anger and demanding swift punishment for the culprit. The incident took place around 7.30 am between Chhatrapati Shivaji Maharaj Terminus (CSMT) and Masjid railway stations, when the victim, a resident of Girgaon in Mumbai, was going to her college in Navi Mumbai to appear for her examinations, an official said.

The victim was sitting alone in a ladies compartment of the Panvel-bound train when the accused entered the bogie as soon it started moving from CSMT station, he said. The accused targeted the student after finding her alone in the compartment and started harassing her sexually, but the victim retaliated and shouted for help. She resisted her attacker courageously in a bid to free herself from his clutches, he said.

As the train reached Masjid station, the first stop after CSMT, the accused hurriedly got down and fled, said the official. The student then went to the next compartment and informed passengers about the incident, he said, adding a call was given on 1512 Railway Police helpline.

The Government Railway Police (GRP) took cognisance of the incident and approached the student, who was made to get down at Vashi railway station and counselled by police personnel, said the official. As the student was in a state of shock, a police team went to her college and and got postponed her exam dates, he said. The victim then went to CSMT railway police station and lodged a complaint based on which a case was registered under section 376 (rape) of the Indian Penal Code (IPC).

The police swung into action and formed four teams to identity and nab the accused, said the official.
After analysing footage from surveillance cameras and working on technical inputs, the accused was tracked down and placed under arrest, he added.
Leader of Opposition in state Assembly Ajit Pawar expressed anger over the incident and said rising incidents of crime against women was a cause of worry and puts a question mark on the functioning of the state home department. A probe should be concluded swiftly and the culprit must be punished, said the former deputy chief minister. (PTI)