According to CO City 1 Anit Kumar, the accused lives alone. (Representational Image)
A retired Army colonel was arrested Tuesday for allegedly attempting to abduct a senior government official’s wife in Noida’s Sector 29. After his alleged kidnapping bid during her morning walk was unsuccessful, police said he accosted the woman, a Dalit, with casteist slurs.
“Charges have been filed against Virender Chauhan (77) under various IPC and sections of the SC/ST Prevention of Atrocities Act,” said Sector 20 police station SHO Manish Kumar Saxena. The charges relate to kidnapping and sexual harassment.
According to CO City 1 Anit Kumar, the accused lives alone. The complainant’s husband is a senior administrative official in the Uttar Pradesh government.
Police said the woman alleged the accused passed sexually charged remarks at her in the past, and her family knew, because of which she took care not to venture out of her house alone. At the time of the incident too, she was accompanied by two friends.
The incident took place around 4.30 am. Police said the accused had been waiting, along with three younger men.
According to the woman, she drifted a little ahead of her friends, which is when the accused came and attempted to pick her up. But his attempt was foiled as her friends intervened.