UDUPI : The Manipal Police on Wednesday arrested a student from Bhatkal for allegedly molesting a software engineer on a moving train from Bengaluru to Karwar. The accused, Mohammed Shuraim (22), was travelling from Mysuru to Bhatkal after attending jamat training, it is said. The police said the victim, a software engineer from Udupi working in Bengaluru, boarded a sleeper coach (S5) to travel from Bengaluru to Udupi on August 24. The following morning, most passengers in her compartment got down at Mangaluru Central railway station. She was alone in the compartment. As the train reached Mulki, the accused allegedly gave the victim unpleasant looks making her uncomfortable. Based on her complaint, the police through the help of CCTV footage arrested the accused.
The complainant explained her trauma in the complaint that she initially ignored the action of the accused. But when she came back from the washroom, the accused allegedly molested her. She then grabbed his collar and threatened to file a complaint. The accused person’s relative in the next compartment came and sought forgiveness.
The victim immediately clicked his picture. Upon reaching Udupi, she reported the incident through the railway app, expressing concerns about women’s safety while travelling in the train. The railway police urged her to file a formal complaint, which she did the following day, accompanied by her father, the police said.
SP Dr Arun K formed a special team which was led by Manipal police inspector Devaraj T V and SI Raghavendra to investigate the case.
A senior officer who investigated the case said the police had only the photo of the suspect with no other details. A list of 1,200 passengers who travelled in the train was analysed. They narrowed down to 58 suspects based on certain criteria. They further focused on passengers in neighbouring coaches and finally reduced the list to eight suspects. The CCTV footage from stations between Udupi and Murudeshwar was examined with the help of railway officials to track the movements of these individuals. Later, they zeroed in on Mohammed Shuraim.