The city of Ahmednagar in the state of Maharashtra has been in the headlines for all the wrong reasons. OpIndia in the past year has reported several incidents of communal violence, grooming jihad, and child sexual abuse. In yet another similar incident, the city police have booked one individual identified as Hamid Sayyed for sexually assaulting a minor Hindu girl belonging to the SC/ST community.
The accused first developed a ‘friendship’ with the minor and then sexually assaulted her. He also captured derogatory photos and videos of the minor and threatened her to obey him, failing which he said he would publicize her images. The FIR in this case was filed on 2nd April 2024 under the relevant sections of the Indian Penal Code, 1860, the Protection of Children from Sexual Offences (POCSO) Act, 2012, and the SC/ST Act, 1989.
The FIR copy in this case has been obtained by OpIndia. The victim girl, in her complaint to the police, stated that the accused Hamid stayed in her neighborhood area and that he sent her an Instagram request. The girl knew the accused hence she accepted the said request and began responding to Hamid’s text casually.
“I knew him as somebody who stays in the locality, so I responded to his texts. We began talking like friends. One day, however, he called me to meet where he forcefully captured some of my pictures. I refused and asked him to delete those, but he continued to take pictures. This was around October 2023. After 6 months or so, he began to threaten me and force me to meet him, failing which he said he would send my pictures to my parents,” the girl said.
As per the FIR, the accused in February 2024 forcefully called the girl to his house. He threatened her to meet failing which he said he would viral the pictures of the minor that he had. The girl saw no option but to meet the accused. On meeting, the accused closed the doors of his house and sexually abused the minor. He also physically assaulted her and threatened to keep her mouth shut.
“He again shot some derogatory photos and videos of me. And used them to blackmail me to meet his sexual demands. I was too scared to tell all this at home. But recently, he again called me and said that he would send all those derogatory videos to my family and my fiance’ and would break my marriage. He said he would kill me if I didn’t meet him and fulfill his sexual desires,” the girl said.
After this, the girl told everything to her father who decided to file a police complaint. The accused Hamid Sayyed, has been booked under sections 376(3)(rape), 342, 354, 354A, 354D, 323, 504, 506, and 507 of the Indian Penal Code, 1860. Several sections like 3, 4, 8, and 12 of the POCSO have also been imposed upon the accused along with relevant sections of ST/ST Act, 1989.
In one more such case reported from the Sangamner region of Maharashtra, a 17-year-old Hindu girl was teased, harassed, and molested by a 36-year-old individual who was identified as Imran Sayyed. The accused blocked the minor’s way to her college and followed her on the streets. He used to tease her making her feel uncomfortable. The girl in the FIR filed on 20th March 2024 also said that she was molested by the accused after which she informed her uncle about the man.
The incident is said to have happened on 17th March. However, the girl did not know who the accused was. She just told her uncle that a man wearing a kurta and a round Islamic cap on his head misbehaved with her making her feel uncomfortable. The uncle then informed the Police who booked an ‘unknown’ individual in the case under section 354D (stalking as the act of following, contacting, or attempting to contact a person persistently despite their clear indication of disinterest) of the Indian Penal Code, 1860 and section 12 of the POCSO Act, 2012.
Later, the accused was seen by one of the relatives of the girl who informed the girl and her uncle. The accused was then schooled and assaulted for following and molesting the girl. He was taken to the police who identified him as Imran Sayyed. However, the FIR has been filed against an ‘unknown’ individual despite the identity of the accused confirmed by the victim.
Further investigations in the case are underway.
