Indian assaults women in train in Melbourne

, Mar 13: A 41-year-old Indian man in Australia today pleaded guilty to indecently assaulting women on trains after offering to read their palms.

Ajay Chopra pleaded guilty to assaulting three women and attempting to assault two others on V/Line trains as they travelled between Bendigo and Melbourne. Chopra, now prohibited from boarding trains between the two stations, had approached five women in the age group of 20 to 30 years between February and October 2011.

Previous court hearings were told he approached the women offering to read their palms, according to media reports. He applied to the court for a suppression order to prevent reporting on the issue, saying he was embarrassed.

Judge Gerard Mullaly, however, said there was not a "skerrick" of a reason to suppress reportings so long as Chopra's victims were not identified. Chopra had his bail extended but has been asked to surrender his passport and not to leave Australia and report to police twice a week. He will undergo a psychological assessment test before his plea hearing resumes in June.

PTI