: Unable to identify the two men who had allegedly tried to molest a woman in north-west Delhi’s Mukherjee Nagar, the Delhi Police will now prepare sketches of the accused and share these with locals to trace them.
The police have also decided to conduct a sensitisation drive in the area, which is a hub for students who prepare for competitive examinations like UPSC, banking and others. On the basis of the description given by one of the constables present at the spot, sketches of the two accused will be prepared and shared with the coaching centres, hostels and PGs located in the area, a senior police officer said.
Accused may be students
“One of our constables remembers their faces and we will be getting their sketches put up in the area. There are high chances that they are students staying in the area who are preparing for competitive exams,” the officer said.
A video of a mob running amok and attacking policemen with stones after they prevented two men from assaulting a woman on New Year’s Eve here had surfaced on Thursday.
Two men in yellow and blue jackets allegedly tried to pull down a woman riding pillion on a motorbike near Batra Cinemas, investigators had said. Noticing the incident, the police had cautioned the two men, who appeared drunk, against indulging in hooliganism, and they were even caught, but after the crowd went berserk and attacked the police, they managed to flee.
Mob out of control
There were around 20-30 policemen deployed in the area and when a mob of 250-300 people gathered, policemen had to retreat to a nearby police post, they said.
The mob banged on the windows of the post and damaged them, prompting the policemen to seek reinforcement.
As soon as extra force came, the mob retreated but the police managed to catch hold of 24-25 people who were detained and were suspected to be involved in the stone-pelting.
“Their names and addresses have been taken down. A couple of them were people who run PGs and a few of those detained included students,” said a source.
The police are also trying to identify the girl whom the accused tried to molest. A case under relevant sections of the IPC for damaging public property, rioting, attacking a government servant and assault or criminal force to a woman with intent to outrage her modesty has been registered against unknown persons. Section 354 (assault or criminal force to woman with intent to outrage her modesty) of the IPC was included in the FIR on the basis of the statement given by Constable Anil Kaushik, who was also an eyewitness and was injured in the incident.
Sensitisation drives
The police are also conducting sensitisation sessions by visiting coaching centres and talking to students.“We have also asked students to help us identify the accused. They have been assured that their identities will not be revealed and they will be rewarded suitably for helping the police,” the source said.
On Thursday, the police had said almost 1,200-1,500 students had been questioned in connection with the incident, which had similarities with the Bengaluru mass molestation case.
“Almost 1,200-1,500 students have been questioned till now. The SHO of Mukherjee Nagar has also formed a WhatsApp group with the owners of coaching centres to ascertain the identities of the hooligans,” a source privy to the probe had said.— PTI
