Naval Officer Accused Of Raping Woman On Warship

An officer of the Indian Navy has been accused of raping and cheating a woman after promising to marry her.

The woman, who will not be named considering the sensitivity of the crime, has filed a complaint at VP Road police station in Mumbai, accusing the 31-year-old junior officer of having sexually assaulted her at various hotels and on a warship.

The woman also accuses the officer of borrowing Rs 2.21 lakh (3021 USD approx.) and failing to return it.

Police have registered a case of rape and cheating against the accused officer. The police have also intimated naval authorities in Delhi, where the accused is currently posted.

A report from the Times of India states that an official team has left for Delhi to investigate the alleged case. However, the outlet reports that the officer has not been reporting to work for some time now, fueling suspicion that he has absconded.

According to the police, the woman had met the accused officer in 2016 through a social media platform and their friendship grew over time.

The woman accompanied the accused to hotels in Mumbai, Delhi, Jaipur, and a warship in Mumbai where they allegedly got intimate, the complaint stated.

The woman claims that she recently learned that the accused officer is now married to another woman, a police official said.

The police have contacted the accused man’s senior officers and have passed on the details of the case, the official added.

"As the accused officer is from the naval police, there is a certain protocol that we are required to follow… But the procedure for his arrest has already been rolled out," the Times of India quoted a police official as saying.

This is an ongoing investigation and no further details have been revealed at this time.

In a similar incident, a 12-year-old girl was allegedly raped by a 48-year-old cleric at a mosque in North East Delhi’s Harsh Vihar area on May 30.

The minor girl was raped at the place of worship while she was there to get some water. The girl returned home and narrated the ordeal to her parents who then alerted the police.

The rapist was arrested and charged under relevant sections of the POCSO Act and section 376 (rape) of the Indian Penal Code (IPC).