Dr Babasaheb Ambedkar Marathwada University professor booked on charge of raping student

AURANGABAD: A professor from Dr Babasaheb Ambedkar Marathwada University in Maharashtra’s Aurangabad city has been booked for allegedly raping a student for over a year and harassing her parents, an official said on Wednesday. The professor’s wife has also been named in the first information report (FIR) for supporting the professor in the alleged crime and telling the complainant that they wanted a son from her, the official said. The FIR was registered at Begumpura police station on Tuesday night under Indian Penal Code sections 376 (rape), 109 (abetment), 114 (abettor present when offence is committed) and 504 (intentional insult).

The official said that the professor of drama who took online classes between 2019 and 2021 came in contact with the complainant when she was preparing for her dissertation. He won her confidence and allegedly persuaded her to live at his home in Aurangabad with his family. During her stay in Aurangabad, the professor allegedly raped her on multiple occasions between February 2022 and February 2023, the official said. When the complainant informed the professor’s wife about the alleged sexual assaults, the latter told her that they wanted a son from her, said the official citing the FIR.

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The complainant went back to her home in Buldhana district after she took ill, but the professor allegedly kept harassing her on the phone, the official said. When the woman stopped taking the accused professor’s calls, he started calling her father, said the official. The woman then told her father about the alleged sexual assaults and they approached the university’s Vishakha committee, which looks into complaints of sexual harassment at the workplace, said the official.

When the professor was summoned, he tried to threaten the parents of the complainant by reaching their home, the official said. The University administration recently gave a letter to the complainant saying she could approach the police. She then filed a complaint against the professor following which he was booked, the official added.