Click to play videoMumbai: The year 2007 has certainly not begun on a gung-ho note for the Maximum City.
With at least four cases of molestation on New Year’s eve coming out in the open, Mumbai seems to be losing its famed reputation of being one of the safer cities for women in India.
While the photographs of a young girl being nearly stripped and molested at the Gateway of India by party animals on the New Year’s eve disgusted the nation, there are other skeletons too, fast tumbling out of the closet.
On Thursday, a couple from Sydney – on a visit to India – came out with shocking details of how they were assaulted by a crowd of drunk revelers in Mumbai on the same day.
Lee and Maya, a couple from Sydney were in Mumbai celebrating new year's eve when a mob surrounded them and molested Maya.
Close on the heels of the two incidents, another set of shocking cases has come to light.
A police constable has been arrested for molesting a young woman in the Azad Maidan area.
Constable Rajesh Pawar was reportedly hauled up by the public and handed over to the Marine Drive Police Station for outraging the modesty of a young woman.
As if this weren’t enough to tarnish the city’s image, a 30-year-old American tourist has said she was molested while taking photographs at the Prince of Wales Museum in the Fort area of the city.
“We have detained a boy in this matter,” says Deputy Commissioner of police (Zone I) Brijesh Singh.
Importantly, south Mumbai is famously known for its posh residents and elite localities, but the unsavoury characters can often be seen lurking in the shadows here.
As complaints of molestation increase, especially in south Mumbai, it's becoming increasingly difficult to term them all as stray incidents.
While many residents of the area feel the incidents are part of an emerging pattern and need to be dealt with immediately.
Police arrest five, on frivolous charges
Mumbai police on Thursday woke up and swung into action after pressure mounted on action against those responsible for the Gateway of India incident.
They detained five people, including two minors, in connection with the case. However, they have been charged only for stealing a cellphone.
"We have detained five youths from Ghatkopar (in northeast Mumbai) for questioning. They have been identified from photographs published in the media," Singh said, adding, "But we will have to check the veracity of their involvement in the incident before arresting them.”
(With inputs from Raksha Shetty)
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