A court here in Maharashtra has awarded two years' rigorous imprisonment to a 54-year-old owner of a private company for molesting a woman employee in 2014.
Thane District and Sessions Judge H M Patwardhan, in the order issued on Monday, pronounced the accused guilty under Indian Penal Code Sections 354 (assault or criminal force on woman with intent to outrage her modesty) and 506 (criminal intimidation), and also imposed a collective fine of Rs 15,000 on him.
Additional Public Prosecutor Vijay Mundhe told the court that the victim, then aged 25 and unmarried, was working in the Navi Mumbai-based company of the accused.
On March 4, 2014, the accused took the woman in his car under the pretext of taking her for the treatment of her ailment. He first took her to Seawoods in Navi Mumbai where he molested her and then drove her to a lodge at Pathardi Naka in neighbouring Nashik district, where he again committed the offence.
The accused also warned her of dire consequences if she informed about the offence to anyone.
However, the victim lodged a complaint at NRI Sagri police station in Navi Mumbai following which the accused was arrested, the prosecution told the court.
Five prosecution witnesses, including the victim and the lodge staff, deposed before the court.
The judge held that the prosecution successfully proved the charges for which the accused needed to be convicted and sentenced.
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