A month after veteran actor Jeetendra's cousin filed a police complaint against him for sexually assaulting her in a hotel room, the Shimla Police booked him under Section 354 of the Indian Penal Code (IPC).
Jeetendra's cousin, who was 18-year-old back in 1971, had sent an email to Himachal Pradesh Director General of Police SR Mardi in February this year seeking registration of an FIR against her cousin, who was 28-year-old when the alleged assault took place.
"An FIR under Section 354 IPC has been registered at Chotta Shimla police station. After her email, we got in touch with the complainant, who later had also sent us a written complaint to support her version," Shimla's Superintendent of Police (SP) Umapati Jamwal told the Indian Express on Wednesday, March 7.
Now, she has been asked by the probing officials to produce evidence that shows she had stayed with Jeetendra in a hotel room on the night of 1971 when she said she was assaulted.
Meanwhile, Jeetendra's lawyer rubbished all the allegations and termed them "baseless and ridiculous".
The investigating officials have said no proof has been provided till now by the woman to justify her allegations. She hasn't given the name of the hotel either, they said.
The alleged sexual assault
According to the allegations by the complainant, Jeetendra called her to New Delhi in 1971, from where he arranged their travel to Shimla. He reportedly asked her to join him on the sets of a film he was shooting for.
She said it was during their stay at a hotel in Shimla that Jeetendra one night entered her room in an inebriated state and forced himself upon her.
In the latest development, the DGP said: "After I got the email from the complainant, I referred it to the SP Shimla. The police maybe doing whatever needed under the given circumstances."
The 75-year-old Jeetendra, whose real name is Ravi Kapoor, has had a significant impact on the Indian film industry with his charismatic performances.
