Cop Sexually Harasses Women On Road, Shoots Man Who Raised Objection

A police officer in India was arrested after he shot a man who objected to the former sexually harassing a group of women.

The cop, identified as Sarvesh, and his friends were consuming alcohol by the road when they saw the women heading to a wedding. The men immediately began passing objectionable comments at them. The incident took place in a village in the northern state of Uttar Pradesh on Tuesday, a local media outlet Latestly reported.

A passerby, identified as Kishan Lal, saw the men harassing the women and objected to the act. An altercation broke out between Lal and the men. The argument soon turned violent during which the cop pulled out his gun and shot Lal. It remains unclear if the police officer was on duty when the incident took place.

Lal was rushed to a local hospital for treatment. His condition was not known.

In the meantime, the women filed a police complaint following which the cop and his friends, whose identities were not revealed by the local media, were taken into custody.

The men have since been charged under the relevant sections of the Indian Penal Code (IPC).

Women Watch, a joint United Nations (UN) project created to promote gender equality, stated unwelcome behavior including sexual gestures or looks, sexual remarks, catcalls, and whistling at someone were all considered sexual harassment.

The incident comes months after a police officer in the same state was suspended for allegedly sexually assaulting a woman. The 28-year-old victim filed a police complaint stating she had met the cop, identified as Sunil Sharma, for some work, and he sexually assaulted her for close to a month after that. The officer was detained for questioning and suspended after he was found guilty.

In another incident earlier this year, two police officers in Uttar Pradesh were booked for allegedly sexually harassing a woman from Kyrgyzstan. The woman, who was married to a man from Uttar Pradesh, residing in the state for close to two decades, filed a complaint stating the two cops harassed her for five months.