Man arrested for harassing 66 women, girls on phone in Uttar Pradesh

KANPUR: A 51-year-old serial molester with over 66 complaints of harassment lodged against him by women and girls across the state at Women Power Line 1090 was nabbed in Auraiya on Friday. Two cell phones and multiple SIMs used for luring and harassing women were seized from his possession. The cases may go up as many of his victims didn’t move police in fear of blackmail.
The accused, Rajesh Kumar, is father of three married sons, is a native of Jeeva Sarsani village under the limits of Bela police station in Auraiya district.
Rajesh’s first misdeed was reported in the year 2018, when a woman approached Women Power Line number and filed a complaint against him.
The accused would call women and girls on their mobile phones and harass them and make objectionable remarks and force them to listen to his vulgar songs and indulge with him in vulgar chat. There were nearly 66 women and girls from various districts across the state who had made a complaint against him with Women Power Line at Lucknow.
Some of his victims did not lodge complaints due to fear of being defamed.
Auraiya cops along with Dial 1090 team identified the accused on the basis of the CDR (call detail record) details of his phone and nabbed him on Saturday.
Rajesh was arrested by a team led by Inspector Bela and Inspector Women Power Line, Lucknow.
“Based on technical inquiry and details obtained from Women Power Line, a joint team of Bela police and Women Power Line, Lucknow traced the location of the suspect and nabbed him from his house in Jeeva Sarsani village of Auraiya,” said superintendent of police Auraiya, Aparna Gautam on Saturday.
Inspector Bela, Pappu Singh told TOI, “During interrogation, Rajesh, a farmer by profession, admitted to his involvement in the crime and revealed that he had victimised over 100 girls and women across the state for personal satisfaction.”
“Rajesh, a class 8th drop-out, used to call girls and women and force them to indulge in vulgar chat and listen to his vulgar songs. He even used to blackmail his victims and also threatened some women,” the officer said.
The complainants told police they had been getting incessant calls and messages from two numbers, which the accused was using. Police said he had contacts of more than 200 women in his phones at the time of his arrest.
Police about his modus-operandi said the accused would allegedly dial different combinations of numbers. If a girl or woman picked up, he would save the number. Later, he would allegedly dial again and force the girls and women to indulge with him in vulgarity.
Inspector, Women Power Line, Ajay Pal, said, “He was harassing girls and women since 2018. Initially, Women Power Line, after tracking down his number following numerous complaints also tried to counsel him, but in vain and he continued with his misdeeds.”
“A case under sections 354 D 2 (whoever commits the offence of stalking), 294 (obscene acts and songs), 504 (whoever intentionally insults, and thereby gives provocation to any person, intending or knowing it to be likely that such provocation will cause him to break the public peace, or to commit any other offence) and 507 (criminal intimidation by an anonymous communication) of IPC has been lodged against him and he has been sent to jail,” the Inspector added.
(The victim's identity has not been revealed to protect her privacy as per Supreme Court directives on cases related to sexual assault)