A local court has put the Chandigarh Police on notice, seeking the status report on a complaint by the father of a minor girl, who was allegedly sexually harassed by five trainees at the Chandigarh Lawn Tennis Association (CLTA) complex in August 2019.

The father has sought an FIR against 17 persons, including officers of the CLTA, Sector 10, Chandigarh Academy of Rural Tennis (CHART), All-India Tennis Association, the then Sector-3 SHO and the UT SSP, alleging that they failed to act as per the Protection of Children from Sexual Offences (POCSO) Act.

In August 2019, five CHART trainees at CLTA were booked for allegedly outraging modesty, sexually harassing and stalking three minor tennis players.

In a fresh complaint filed on September 15, a 48-year-old Mohali resident, complained that his minor daughter was among the three girls sexually harassed and stalked by at least five trainees.

The complainant said the issue was brought to the notice of CLTA officers, but they gave “false assurances” and acts of sexual harassment did not stop. “On July 22, 2019, the aggressors molested my daughter,” he said.

He said that several complaints were given to these persons, who are seniors IAS officers of Punjab and Haryana cadre, but they “failed to act and discharge their duties” as per law. “These persons have gone to the extent to shield the aggressors, who violated self-respect of my minor daughter, entailing molestation, sexual assault and harassment,” the complainant said.

Seeking a fair investigation, the complainant said these “highly influential” persons were “responsible for criminal conspiracy to commit the offence of cheating and forgery apart from their failure to report and act as per the provisions of Section 19 and 21 of the POCSO Act.”

He said he had filed a police complaint in February and July, but received no response, hence he moved the court.

The complainant has sought an FIR under Sections 17 (abetment), 18 (attempt to commit an offence) and 19 (reporting of offences) and 21 (failure to report or record a case) of the POCSO Act, and Sections 415 (cheating), 420 (cheating and dishonestly inducing delivery of property), 463 (forgery), 465 (forgery) and 469 (forgery for purpose of harming reputation) and 120-B (criminal conspiracy) of the Indian Penal Code.

The case will next come up for hearing on October 5.

Source Link

Picture Source :