VIJAYAWADA: Krishnalanka police early on Sunday rescued a girl from an auto driver, who allegedly misbehaved with her and tried to molest her. The auto driver, Khadeer, was arrested. The girl, a 15-year-old intermediate student from Gollapalli village in Nuzvid mandal, left home around 10 pm on Saturday due to issues with her parents and to meet her Facebook friend, Anjaneyulu, City Police Commissioner Kanthi Rana Tata said. After arriving at Pandit Nehru Bus Station in the city, she took an auto to a hotel near Benz Circle where Anjaneyulu claimed he was staying.
When the girl tried to contact Anjaneyulu, his mobile was switched off. She then sought the auto driver’s help to find him. They looked for Anjaneyulu in every hotel in and around Benz Circle for over three hours, but in vain. “Taking advantage of the situation, Khadeer took her to a secluded place and demanded her to pay `800 as auto fare,” the commissioner said.
Scared teen girl calls family, mom dials 112 for police help
“At 3 am, the duo reportedly had an argument over it and when the minor failed to pay the amount, the auto driver allegedly abused her verbally, touched her inappropriately, and tried to molest her,” the officer said. Scared, the girl called her mother who immediately dialed 112 for help. Noticing that the girl had alerted her parents and police, Khadeer fled the scene.
“In just five minutes, we traced the girl’s location and rescued her. With the help of CCTV footage and cell phone location, we traced the auto driver and arrested him. Based on a complaint, a case has been registered against him under IPC sections 363, 354 and 506 and Section 12 of the POCSO Act. Further investigation is underway,” said CP Rana.“Women’s safety is the police department’s top priority and women harassment cases will be dealt with seriously in tune with our zero-tolerance attitude towards gender-based violence and atrocities,” the commissioner added.
TAKE STRANGERS ON SOCIAL MEDIA WITH PINCH OF SALT: CP TO WOMEN, STUDENTS
City police commissioner Kanthi Rana Tata advised women and girl students not to believe in strangers they met on Facebook, Instagram or any other social media platform. He further urged all women and students to download the Disha SOS mobile application in their mobile phones and use it while in distress