BENGALURU: Varun Kumar (28), the Indian field hockey player wanted by Bengaluru police in a POCSO case, is said to be still absconding. Two police teams that had gone in search of him have returned empty-handed.
Deputy Commissioner of Police (West) S Girish told TNIE that a search is still on to arrest him. “Two teams were sent to arrest him. Both teams have returned empty handed,” he said.
Varun, an Arjuna awardee, is also a DSP-rank officer with Punjab Police. He was promoted as DSP on February 4, a day before the POCSO case was filed against him by a 21-year-old professional volleyball player from Hyderabad. On February 5, the survivor had filed a complaint against Varun in Jnanabharathi police station. Along with POCSO, he was also booked for rape and cheating by Jnanabharathi police.
The woman, in her complaint, stated that Varun started sexually abusing her, knowing well that she was a minor. She said she had come for volleyball training at SAI in 2017, when she was 16 years old, and stayed at the women’s hostel on SAI premises.
In 2018, Varun came to SAI for coaching. She came in touch with Varun through Instagram. She kept avoiding him in the beginning and did not reply to his messages too. He is alleged to have tried to meet her through his friends, but in vain. After he promised to marry her, she met him and they became close. He is alleged to have taken her out for dinner in Jayanagar, and raped her in a hotel room. They are said to have been in a relationship for the past five years.
When she started pushing Varun for marriage, he threatened to release her private pictures online. Accusing him of blackmail, she said he stopped calling her and replying to her messages, and also refused to marry her.
Varun, a native of Himachal Pradesh, shifted to Punjab for hockey. Investigations are on.