Indian police have arrested a 39-year-old businessman for the alleged molestating of a teen Bollywood actress aboard a flight from Delhi to Mumbai.
“We have arrested the accused late Sunday night in Mumbai. He has been booked under the stringent Protection of Children from Sexual Offences Act besides other sections of the Indian Penal Code,” Mumbai Police official Lata Shirsat told the media Monday.
The 17-year-old actress whose acclaimed young portrayal of Indian wrestler Geeta Phogat in Aamir Khan-starrer movie Dangal won her national award, took to social media late Saturday night to narrate her ordeal on board private airline Vistara’s flight.
In the video post, she alleged that a male co-passenger had rubbed his foot on her neck and back while sitting behind her on the flight, prompting Indian authorities to order a probe.
Police or Vistara, which operated the flight where the alleged incident took place late Saturday night, have not disclosed the name of offender.
However, local media has identified the accused as Vikas Sachdev.
Sachdev’s wife Divya has claimed that the incident was nothing but an accident and that her husband was tired and upset as his uncle died in Delhi.
“My husband told me that he had been sleeping when his leg accidentally touched her (the actress’s) hand; he apologized to her for that.
“My husband respects women. Because of this incident, my entire family is disturbed. We want justice,” she told a local newspaper.
Vistara has apologised to the actress for what she experienced on its flight and said that it has “zero tolerance” for such behaviour, assuring her of a detailed investigation into the serious allegations.
