‘False and baseless’: JSW Group chairman Sajjan Jindal denies rape charges

Sajjan Jindal, the chairman and managing director of the JSW Group, has dismissed the rape allegations levelled against him by a 30-year-old woman as “false and baseless”.

In a statement issued on Sunday evening, the industrialist said he would provide full cooperation throughout the investigation.

“As the investigation is ongoing, we will refrain from commenting further at this stage. We kindly request you to respect the privacy of the family, said the statement,” the statement said.

The Mumbai Police has booked Jindal, 64, on charges of rape, molestation and criminal intimidation. 

The woman, the resident of Mumbai, had accused Jindal of raping her after promising to marry her. She claimed she had met the billionaire in the VIP box of the Dubai stadium during a cricket match a few years ago which led to a friendship between them.

The woman claimed she later met Jindal inside a star hotel in suburban Bandra and south Mumbai's Jindal Mansion and also went on a drive with him in a car before the alleged sexual assault

The alleged sexual assault happened on January 24 last year inside the JSW Group headquarters, she said in her complaint.

The woman approached the police on February 16 this year, and the first information report (FIR) was filed at the BKC police station in Mumbai on December 13 under sections 376 (rape), 354 (outraging modesty of a woman) and 506 (criminal intimidation) of the IPC. 

In the FIR, the complainant alleges that Jindal has been avoiding contact with her since the alleged sexual assault. 

According to some reports, the woman is a doctor by profession, though her social media profile describes her as an actor.