20-year-old would harass Bhayandar woman, who used to be his neighbour, with lewd late-night calls

 

Ram Parmar, Mumbai Mirror March 16,2013

 

 

A 20-year-old engineering student from Uttar Pradesh has been arrested by the Navghar (Bhayander East) police for stalking a married woman who used to live next door to him in Varanasi. Vishal Verma is the first suspect to be charged under the new Section 354-D (stalking) of the Indian Penal Code, which is now a non-bailable offence.

Verma, a first-year engineering student at IIMT Engineering College, Meerut, and a resident of Varanasi, first met the woman when she was unmarried. He became infatuated with her and his obsession continued even after she got married and moved from Varanasi to Bhayandar. Inspector Dinkar Pingle of Navghar police station said Verma would telephone her late at night and harass her, asking her for “kisses” over the phone.

On February 21, Verma again called the woman to profess his love for her and said he would come down to Bhayander to meet her. He asked her for a kiss, at which the woman slammed the phone down. Verma continued to telephone her, but she ignored his calls. “Finally, the woman registered a complaint with us on March 3 and we started to investigate the matter,” said Inspector Pingle. “We sent a team to Benares, which arrested Verma and charged him under the new Section 354 (D) of the IPC,” added Pingle. Since it is a now a non-bailable offence, Verma has been remanded in police custody till Monday, when he will be produced before the Thane Sessions Court.