Chippada Bhargav alias Funbucket Bhargav, a TikTok star who gained popularity for his video featuring OMG girl Nithya, was arrested by the Andhra Pradesh Police on Tuesday for allegedly raping a 14-year-old girl in Visakhapatnam.
As per reports, the Police arrested him in Kompally, Hyderabad and booked him under the Protection of Children from Sexual Offences (POCSO) Act, Section 376 (Punishment for sexual assault) and 354 (Assault or criminal force to woman) of the Indian Penal Code.
The famous line “Oh my God! Oh my God!” that was used in Bhargav’s videos with Nithya was picked up by several brands, including Twitter, Netflix and Swiggy. The case of sexual assault against him came to light when the victim’s family filed a complaint on April 16 at Pendurthi Police Station under the Visakhapatnam commissionerate. Reports suggest that the family filed a complaint after coming to know that the victim was four-month pregnant.
The case was transferred from Pendurthi to Disha Police in Visakhapatnam as they deal with crimes against women and children in Andhra Pradesh. These stations were set up after the horrific gang-rape and murder of a Hyderabad-based vet in 2019.
Disha Assistant Commissioner of Police Prem Kajal said that the accused had promised the victim offers in media channels after seeing her in TikTok videos. She said, “He had proposed to the survivor, and she had rejected him. But he blackmailed her, saying he had her explicit videos. The survivor is also pregnant.”
She also added that the accused was produced before the Judicial Magistrate and has been sent to remand till May 3. The Police also seized a mobile phone and a white coloured Nissan vehicle from Bhargav. The Police has also warned the people against sharing the victim’s photograph on social media as it is against the law. Anyone found posting the photograph would be dealt with as per the law.
Actor Nithya clarified she is not the victim
After the news of Bhargav’s arrest broke out on social media, several users assumed that the victim is 15-year-old Nithya, who is popularly known as the “Oh My God” girl. Nithya came forward and issued a statement in a video message and said that she is not the victim in the case.
Nithya claimed that she learnt about the allegations against Bhargav from social media. She said, “It is true that Bhargav got arrested but I am not related to that case in any way. I have come to know about this from social media after my followers have been messaging me and sending links. They were asking me what happened, even I don’t know.”
She further added that meme-makers and Youtubers are using her name, and they do not know anything about the case. “I hope you all would delete such videos if you people are not doing this intentionally. People are sending me messages feeling bad about me, but I’m fine here at the shoot,” she added. She also said that it had been around a year since she met Funbucket Bhargav and no longer shoots with him.
