Youth held on charge of misbehaving with girl

A 22-year-old construction worker was arrested by the Vyalikaval police on Tuesday on the charge of misbehaving with a schoolgirl.

The accused Manikantha, a resident of Muneshwara block and a PU dropout, was allegedly addicted to drugs. “He would stalk girls and harass them frequently,” an official said. On Tuesday, he confronted a girl who was returning from school and misbehaved with her. The victim raised an alarm following which passers-by chased and caught him. But he managed to escape.

The girl filed a complaint with the police, who had received a similar complaint earlier in the day.

They nabbed him based on CCTV footage. “We managed to get the registration number of his motorcycle, based on which we caught him,” a police officer said.

Manikantha has been booked under various sections of the Protection of Children from Sexual Offences Act and under Section 354 of the Indian Penal Code . He has been remanded in judicial custody.