Mumbai: Actress beaten up for 'soliciting customers'

Mumbai: Two years back, Goregaon locals had barged into the local Saroj Guesthouse to bash up women and pimps reportedly engaged in prostitution, and got the lodge closed. Last week, a similar incident took place in the suburb. Residents of Motilal Nagar gathered around the residence of a Bhojpuri actress suspected to be soliciting customers to her house, and beat her and a producer up. The police arrested two residents on charges of assault and molestation.The actress, Lovy Shrivastav, stays at a flat in Motilal Nagar in Goregaon (West) with a roommate.

The episode unfolded last Thursday, when a producer had gone to meet her at her apartment. Police officers investigating the case said that when the producer left her house, residents gathered to assault him, and also damaged his car. As the situation spun out of control, Shrivastav rushed to the rescue of her friend. But angry locals turned on her and allegedly thrashed her as well.

Unable to help matters, the duo called up the helpline of the police control room and informed the cops of the incident. A Goregaon police team reached the spot and took Shrivastav to hospital. Seeing the police approach, locals quickly dispersed, and by the time the officers reached the spot, they could not find anybody.

Residents thronged Bhojpuri actress\'s house, thrashed her and a producer for \'bringing disrepute to the locality\'.

Shrivastav then went to the Goregaon police station and lodged a complaint against the residents. The police have registered an FIR against the unidentified accused for assault. "We have been observing for months that Shrivastav gets a lot of men to her house to indulge in obscene and illegal activities. We have warned her many times but she does not listen. We are fed up. The area is earning a bad name due to her," said a resident.

"We arrested two persons who beat up the duo on the charges of assault and molestation. They were produced in court and remanded in police custody," said an officer from Goregaon police station. "When we went to the area to investigate why the residents assaulted the two, some locals told us they suspected that there was prostitution and soliciting going on at Shrivastav's house. They also told us that she gets different men to her house every day, and is bringing the locality to disrepute."

When MiD DAY spoke to Shrivastav, she said, "[The producer] was pulling out of the car parking when the locals attacked him. They told him menacingly, 'We know what you come here for.' And began hitting him. I don't want to say anything more."

(For updates you can share with your friends, follow IBNLive on Facebook, Twitter, Google+ and Pinterest)