BENGALURU: A woman has filed an FIR against a 52-year-old UK resident for sexually harassing her on board a Lufthansa flight from Frankfurt to Bengaluru. He was taken into custody on Tuesday (November 7) morning as soon as the flight reached Terminal 2 of Kempegowda International Airport.
The incident took place mid-air on Monday night on board LH-0754 after it took off from Frankfurt, said a source. The 32-year-old woman is a native of Tirupati. The abuser, Shankaranarayan Ranganathan, has been booked on charges of sexual harassment.
According to the FIR, “Around four hours after the flight had taken off from the Frankfurt Am Main Airport, the woman had dozed off. She woke up with a start when the man seated next to her placed his hand on her thigh. The incident occurred sometime between 11.45 pm and midnight. The woman warned him and asked him to remove his hand. Sometime later, he repeated the act. After that, the woman alerted a cabin crew member and changed her seat.”
The Central Industrial Security Force (CISF) were alerted about the incident before the flight reached the airport around 2 am of Tuesday. “As soon as the flight reached the airport, waiting CISF personnel took Ranganathan into custody and handed him over to the airport police,” said a security official.
He was taken to the KIA police station and a case filed under Section 354A of IPC. The section states, “Any man who engages in unwelcome and explicit sexual behaviour, demands sexual favours, shows pornography against a woman’s will, or makes sexually coloured remarks can be punished with imprisonment or fine.”
Lufthansa could not be reached for their response to the incident.