Mumbai: A taxi driver was arrested on Friday for allegedly molesting an Australian national in Colaba. Police said the incident took place on January 20, but was reported to them by the victim on Thursday. They said the victim is in India for an educational course at a south Mumbai-based NGO, and is staying in Colaba for the duration.
DCP (Zone I) Manoj Kumar Sharma said, “The victim said she had hailed the cab in Colaba on January 20. When she took the passenger seat in the front, the driver asked her to fasten the seatbelt as this is mandatory. Before she could do so, he reached over and fastened the belt, touching her inappropriately in the process.”
In her complaint, the 22-year-old woman said the taxi driver’s actions made her uncomfortable, and she shouted at him before getting out. After consulting her friends in the city, she decided to approach the police. Mr. Sharma said the complainant had taken down the taxi’s license plate number.
The driver, identified as Zia-ul Ansari, 20, a resident of Worli, was arrested and charged with outraging a woman's modesty under the IPC. He was initially remanded in police custody till Saturday and later in judicial custody, police said.
