Kolkata: Woman abused by mask-less man in auto, gets him arrested

KOLKATA: A man was arrested on Friday for threatening a fellow autorickshaw commuter, a young woman, when she asked him to put on a mask. The man has been booked under various sections of IPC, including threat and molestation, and under Disaster Management Act for not wearing a mask.
The incident took place late on Wednesday, when the woman was returning home at Beliaghata from Sahitya Parishad Street. “When she boarded the auto, all the other passengers were wearing their masks. When the auto reached Kankurgachi, one passenger alighted and a new one stepped into the auto without a mask. The woman, along with other passengers, questioned the driver why he was allowed to get in. The offender—40-year-old Bimal Basu—who appeared to be somewhat inebriated began to threaten her,” police said. “He told her he would click her photograph and harass her regularly as he was a local and she, too, travelled on the route every day. The woman called up a family member, who advised her to approach the police.”
On alighting from the auto on CIT Road, the woman went to the cops, who traced the auto, asked the driver where the accused had been dropped and arrested him from his residence. A senior officer said the force planned to felicitate the woman for her resolve to get the mask-less offender booked.