The Pudukottai All-Women Police Station in Thoothukudi district booked a case against L. Sasikala Pushpa, Rajya Sabha MP, and her family members on the charges of sexual harassment and torture levelled against them by a woman who was employed in their home.
Based on a complaint lodged by Banumathi (22), the domestic helper, residing at Keela Street, Aanaikudi, Thisayanvilai, Tirunelveli district, the case was filed on Tuesday evening under Sections 294 (b) (obscene acts), 323 (voluntarily causing hurt), 344 (wrongful confinement), 354 (A) (sexual harassment) and 506 (i) (criminal intimidation) of the Indian Penal Code and Section 4 of the Prohibition of Harassment of Woman Act, 2002.
In her complaint, Banumathi levelled charges against the MP, her husband Lingeswara Thilagan, son Pradeep Raja and mother T. Gowri.
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The maid, along with her sister, who also claimed to have been tortured by the MP and her family, approached the District Police Office in Thoothukudi on Monday and submitted a petition seeking action against these four people.
In the petition, the woman stated that while she was expected to be at the beck and call of the MP, the latter’s husband and son harassed her sexually. She claimed that she attempted to escape from the MP’s house in Chennai in August 2015. Angered over this, the MP, along with her husband and mother, assaulted her.