After a shocking video of a man threatening and verbally abusing a woman on a local Mumbai train went viral, police tracked him down and arrested him on Friday.
Mohammad Rizwan Ansari was charged with a case of molestation, criminal intimidation and mischief in a public place after he was caught on camera abusing and taking off his belt to threaten a woman passenger.
The incident occurred in a second-class general compartment of a Western Railway local between Jogeshwari and Andheri station on Wednesday around 5 pm.
The woman, a Nepalese national, was sleeping on a seat when Ansari, who alleged that he was drunk, got into the compartment.
Another woman commuter on the scene filmed the incident. Ansari is seen yelling and hurling abuses at the woman for sleeping on the seat despite there being sufficient empty seats on the train.
He also slapped her at one point while a full bystander effect occurred. None of the other commuters helped the woman.
He proceeded to walk away. When she warned him against raising his voice, he came back and took off his belt to threaten her as he continued to hurl abuse.
Police tracked down the accused using the video clip and CCTV footage.
Officials said that Ansari attempted to defend himself by claiming that the woman was not a woman but a transgender person. Police officials said they were initially confused by the claim. The accused reportedly lied to lessen the charges against him.
When the found the victims, they realised that she was a woman from Nepal.
The passengers on the compartment were criticised online for their reluctance to help the woman. Many social media users questioned the safety of women who travel on Mumbai’s railways.
The incident comes amid a growing number of violent incidents on Mumbai local trains. In January, a college teacher was stabbed to death by a passenger after an argument at Malad station.
