Mumbai, May 11 (PTI) A court here sentenced a 35-year-old taxi driver to two years rigorous imprisonment for outraging the modesty of a hotel professional by forcibly kissing her hand.
The defence’s contention that kissing the hand is a “routine practice” for greeting in the hospitality industry was rejected by the court, which noted that the act did not occur during the victim’s official duties.
“The act done by the accused was not committed during work of the informant and she was not greeting the accused in context of her official work. So there was no question of greeting the accused in the manner of hospitality. Therefore, the intention of the accused is to outrage the modesty of the informant,” the court said.
Further, the court underlined that there is nothing on record to show that kissing on the hand is a manner of greetings and that training in the same is imparted in hospitality management courses.
The judgment, delivered last month by Judicial Magistrate (First Class) Prashant S Ghodke, found taxi driver Rocky Fernandes guilty under sections 354 and 354(D) (outraging modesty and stalking ) of the Indian Penal Code.
The prosecution’s case was based on two separate encounters between the victim, a front office associate at a leading hotel chain, and the accused.
On November 11, 2023, while the victim was traveling to work in a shared taxi, the accused, who was driving, refused her fare upon arrival.
When she extended her hand to wish him ‘Happy Diwali’, the accused caught her hand and kissed it, causing her to flee in distress, the prosecution said.
About ten days later, the victim encountered the accused again in a taxi. During the ride, the accused diverted from the usual drop-off point, asked for her mobile number, and claimed he “liked her”.
The victim refused and immediately reported the matter to her Head of Department (HOD), leading to a police complaint.
The court after perusal of evidence on the record concluded that the prosecution has proved both the offences against the accused beyond reasonable doubts. PTI AVI BNM
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