Woman molested in a moving bus, Odisha CM Patnaik orders probe

Odisha CM Naveen Patnaik ordered a probe into alleged molestation of a working woman in the bus.

Bhubaneswar, Mar 31: The police on Friday began investigating the alleged molestation of a working woman in a bus following a directive from Odisha Chief Minister Naveen Patnaik.

Patnaik had tweeted on Thursday night that he had directed the Commissioner of Police to probe into the allegation made by the woman and take immediate action. The Chief Minister had also asked the police to fix responsibility for the lapses, if any.

Though the woman was yet to formally lodge any written complaint with the police, the Bhubaneswar-Cuttack Commissionerate of Police began its investigation on the basis of her Facebook post.

The woman in her Facebook post had alleged that an elderly person had attempted to molest her while she was coming to Bhubaneswar in a bus from her native Pattamundai area in Kendrapara district on Thursday.

She also alleged that her urgent call to the police control room Helpline Number 100 and Women Helpline number 1091 in Cuttack was not reachable and went unanswered respectively.

The victim also said that though about 60 passengers were in the bus, no one came to her rescue and even the bus staff asked her to remain silent.

"I was alone among 60 passengers in a moving bus, no one turned up. The conductor just consoled me saying that I have asked him to be decent, please sit peacefully. I called 100 but it said that this number can't be reached," she wrote on her Facebook account.

I later called the woman helpline no 1091 of Cuttack but no one took the pain of answering, she added. She said that the state government and police were answerable for the incident.

Based on her Facebook posts, we have begun a probe into the incident. Cuttack DCP Sanjeev Arora will lead the probe, Police Commissioner Y B Khurania told reporters. A special team, including one lady officer, is probing the incident under the leadership of Cuttack DCP, he said.

PTI