Men who molested teen amid Ganpati crowds still on the loose

Some 20 days after three men groped a teenager under the cover of the crowds thronging Lalbaugcha Raja's immersion procession in Parel, the Kalachowkie police are still clueless about the accused.

No safety in numbers: The incident occurred on September 18, the final day of Ganpati festival, at Lalbaug in Parel. File pic

After MiD DAY published pictures of the incident -- one more sexual assault on yet another woman provoking outrage across the city -- cops from Bhoiwada police station visited our office to collect evidence.

For a day, policemen from Bhoiwada and Kalachowkie fought over jurisdiction. Finally, a case was registered at Kalachowkie police station, but the probe seems to be moving at a snail's pace. Till date, the investigators have only succeeded in tracing the victim."

"For investigative purposes, it was necessary to locate the victim. With the help of locals, we got to know that she stays in Lower Parel and is 16-years-old. She had recently given her Std X exams," said Senior Inspector Bhausaheb Gite of Kalachowkie police station.

According to the Kalachowkie police, arresting the suspects is a tricky task as there is no evidence of the crime other than the photographs published in this paper.
Gite added, "To begin with, we sent the photographs to the forensic lab and got clearer images than what had been published. We have taken help of social media and cellular networking apps to circulate the photos. Apart from that, all police stations have been put on alert about the matter."

Cops suspect that the accused may not be from the city. "If they were locals, we would have got to know about their whereabouts by now. During processions, people from across the state visit Lalbaugcha Raja. There are chances that the accused came from outside Mumbai," said an officer from Kalachowkie police station.u00a0