A 20-year-old college student in India confronted her would-be attacker by dragging him to the nearest police station while bystanders silently watched.
Pradnya Mandhare was entering the train station during an afternoon in Vile Parle, a suburb of Mumbai, when a drunken male stranger approached her.
The man, now identified as Chavan Chowdee, allegedly grabbed her inappropriately amidst the crowd of travelers. Mandhare stated, as told to the Telegraph, “I was shocked for a couple of seconds, but then I started hitting him with my bag. He was trying to hit me, but I could overpower him because he was stinking of alcohol…”
Although the Kandivli station was full of people, no one came forward to help restrain Chowdee, who police say is a drug addict. Mandhare was left to pull him to the government railway police by herself while he struggled to break free, saying, “walking was tough, because he was trying to escape and I was afraid he would attack me.”
The GRP released a statement to the media after the attack, saying, “We have arrested the accused, Chavan (25)… who was also drunk when the incident took place. We conducted a medical test of the accused and he will be produced in court.”
This is a significant victory for women in India, since, as Mandhare reiterated to a local paper, most women are hesitant to come forward or inform the authorities about an attack since the police can be “uncooperative.” Many families also fear a report will tarnish a daughter’s reputation for life and would rather conceal any wrongdoing on her behalf.
Mandhare encouraged other people to condemn assaults similar to hers and stated, “women should raise their voice and teach [attackers] a lesson. Women are not objects for anyone to touch at will.”
image c/o: inquisitr.com
