Businessman gets one-year rigorous imprisonment, Rs 10,000 fine

Chhatrapati Sambhajinagar

A local businessman, has been sentenced to one year of rigorous imprisonment along with a fine of Rs 10,000 by first-class judicial magistrate A. A.Motale/Pore for sexually harassing a 20-year-old married woman at his office. The court has also ordered that Rs 5,000 from the fine be paid to the survivor as compensation.

The accused has been identified as Bhagwan Shelar. According to the complaint, the woman had joined Shelar’s office near Gajanan Maharaj Mandir as a receptionist and cleaner on September 19, 2016. She was promised a monthly salary of Rs 5,000 and was assigned working hours from 10 a.m. to 6 p.m. On the second day itself, she began noticing inappropriate behavior from the accused. Despite discomfort, she continued working due to financial constraints. However, on the third day (September 22), Shelar allegedly made lewd remarks such as, “Feel free, smile, you look nice,” and proceeded to sexually harass her. The woman managed to escape and informed her family, following which a case was lodged at the Mukundwadi Police Station. During the court proceedings, public prosecutors Ashok Ghuge and Anand Paikarav presented witness testimonies supporting the survivor’s account. After examining the evidence, the court found Shelar guilty and pronounced the sentence. The court also ruled that failure to pay the fine would lead to an additional 15 days of imprisonment.