After four days of police custody, a Delhi court has ordered television actor Ashish Kapoor to be remanded in judicial custody for a 14-day period. The actor is looking at serious charges after he was arrested following a complaint from a 24-year-old woman, who had accused him of rape at a private party. Kapoor will remain in Tis Hazari Jail until further notice.
Kapoor, known for starring in the hit television series 'Yeh Rishta Kya Kehlata Hai', was apprehended by the Maharashtra Police on Thursday. The woman had filed the complaint on August 11. After his arrest, the Delhi Police had a moved an application for a 5-day remand in police custody for conducting procedures such as the recovery of the victim's phone and a potency test for the accused.
The victim had claimed that at the party, she was drugged and raped by the actor, and that he also filmed the assault. There were Ashish and three others at the party. Alcohol was served, and everyone was inebriated. She alleged that someone had drugged her drink, which caused her to lose consciousness. She was forced into the bathroom, where she was raped. Though the woman initially claimed gang rape and gave other names of men she alleged were involved, she retracted her statement later. In her revised statement, she named just Ashish.
An NDTV report says the woman had interacted with Kapoor on Instagram, and the latter invited her to a friend's house party where the incident occurred.
After the details of the complaint leaked, Ashish went into hiding. He was later traced to Goa but fled as the police arrived there. He was then traced to Pune, where he finally landed in police custody.
Ashish Kapoor has been part of top shows like 'Saraswatichandra', 'Love Ya Arranged Marriage', 'Dekha Ek Khwaab' and 'Woh Apna Sa'.