Peddapalli: Woman protests against sexual harassment

Peddapalli: A married woman from Begumpet on Tuesday staged a protest in front of the Ramgiri police station demanding the arrest of a man who sexually exploited her. She also alleged that the family members of the accused were threatening to kill her if she did not withdraw her complaint. She said the accused and his relatives were claiming to have the support of local MLA and IT Minister D Sridhar Babu. According to the woman, a native of Begumpet in Ramgiri mandal, a man named Shiv Kumar sexually exploited her on several occasions by threatening to kill her children. He also promised to marry her, but later reneged. Following this, she lodged a complaint with the Ramgiri police against Shiv Kumar and his family members on May 25.

She said in the complaint that Shiv Kumar allegedly took five tolas of gold and Rs five lakh from her, but refused to return the cash and gold. She alleged that even after a month, the police had not arrested the accused due to political pressure. She said that though she had also met the DCP, no action was taken. Meanwhile, Siva Kumar’s brother Dasari Srinivas and sister Shravani threatened to kill her if she did not withdraw the complaint. She said that on Monday evening when she was going to the medical shop, they blocked her way and tried to kill her. She immediately called her brothers and the police. The woman alleged that Siva Kumar’s relatives had claimed that they had the support of Minister Sridhar Babu. She also alleged that Kamanpur Mandal Congress president Vainala Raju was also supporting them.