THIRUVANANTHAPURAM: Raising serious questions on the safety of women in the state capital, a 36-year-old female was sexually assaulted by an unidentified man in the museum compound during morning walk. The bearded man in white sleeveless t-shirt and black trouser tried to grab the woman when she was approaching the Museum gate near the Corporation office.
Curiously, the museum compound in the heart of Thiruvananthapuram is the most preferred morning walk destination for the city’s elite, including top police officials. The incident occurred at around 4:45am on Wednesday. In her complaint, the woman, a medical practitioner, said the man arrived in a white car.
When she resisted his move, he fled, scaled the fence, and escaped. She immediately alerted the museum security, who in turn notified the nearby police station. However, they could not apprehend him. In one of the CCTV visuals, the man was seen fleeing the place even as the woman tried to chase him down.
The complainant alleged that the police did not do enough to apprehend the culprit on the spot despite being told that he was hiding inside the museum. “ I told the police that the culprit would be inside the museum. But they did not check the place. I had asked them to check the CCTV visuals, but they said some of the cameras were not working,” she said. However, police said the probe was heading in the right direction and the lack of clarity of CCTV footage was the only hindrance.
Cops release sketch of accused
A police officer said the probe was on. “We have gathered the CCTV visuals. However, many of those are not very clear and hence, we have not been able to identify the person. But we are hoping to make a breakthrough soon,” said the officer.
The police have registered a case of sexual harassment. Based on the inputs provided by the woman, the police have released the sketch of the suspect. Meanwhile, the incident has created a safety scare among city residents. Shiny Benjamin, national award-winning documentary director, said the incident has created a sense of fear among the women, who regularly turn up for walking in the museum compound.
“The museum compound was a serene and safe place. We could walk there comfortably listening to the music or watching the greenery. Now, a fear has set in,” she said. Shiny said the safety of women is under risk even in the heart of the city and that’s really shameful.