Mumbai Police are on the lookout for a businessman who attacked his 26-year old woman physiotherapist friend with a corrosive substance, injuring her eye and face. Police said on Thursday that the substance used by the accused was not acid.
45-year old Jerry John, who knew the victim, Aryanka Hosbetkar, for 10 months, was upset over being told to not stay in touch with her. “She came to know that he shared a similar relation with some other girl. She was unhappy about it and had started avoiding him,” Mumbai Deputy Commissioner of Police (Zone V), Dhananjay Kulkarni told The Hindu .
Spurned by this, he threw a chemical on her face.
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“The chemical was not very strong. It was mildly corrosive. The victim's face has not been disfigured. She had some irritation on her face. She is out of danger and is presently undergoing treatment for her eye. There is no permanent damage, according to our preliminary information. The hospital is yet to submit a medical report,” he said.
Ms. Hosbetkar and Jerry belong to a group which cycles around the city at night. Jerry had apparently lied to the group that he was a divorcee. He is married and stays with his wife and five-year-old son, Mr. Kulkarni said.
Early morning on Wednesday, when she returned from her cycling trip at 3 a.m., Jerry was waiting outside her house in Worli's Adarsh Nagar area.
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“They had a discussion for more than an hour, after which he left. At around 5 a.m., Ms. Hosbetkar’s friend Shammi Shetty called up Jerry and asked him to come to her place. He said he wanted to broker peace between them. As soon as Jerry entered, he threw a substance he had brought with him in a bottle on her face. When she started shouting, he took her cell phone and ran away, bolting her door from outside. We have formed a team to hunt for him. His brother is helping us. But his family members have said he hasn't returned home since Monday,” Mr. Kulkarni said.
He said samples of the chemical have been sent for chemical analysis. Police have booked him for causing grievous hurt. “We have filed a case under Sections 341, 379 and 326 of the Indian Penal Code,” he said.