Chandigarh: An IAS officer in Haryana took to Facebook and shares ordeal after daughter, a DJ by profession, was almost kidnapped by State’s Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) President Subhash Barala’s son.
In gut-wrenching Facebook post, the IAS officer said that he will failing in his duty ‘as a father to my daughter if I did not stand with her completely in this matter.’
The girl had accused Vikas Barala, the 23-year-old son of Haryana BJP Chief Subhash Barala, and his friend Ashish Kumar of stalking her last night.
A case was registered under section 354 D (stalking) of IPC and 185 of the Motor Vehicle Act (driving by a drunken person or by a person under the influence of drugs), on the basis of a complaint filed by the daughter of the IAS officer.
They were arrested and released on bail soon, police said
“We arrested both Vikas and Ashish and later they were bailed out,” Deputy Superintendent of Police, Chandigarh, Satish Kumar said.
You can read the full Facebook post below;
I would like to share with you all a horrendous experience we went through last night.
My daughter Varnika was returning home around midnight yesterday in her car when a couple of goons started following her in a tata safari. This started at 12:15 am in sector 7 market. They tried to block her car at the traffic signal, but she showed presence of mind and sped away.
They chased her and blocked her way time and again. She again maneuvered away. She called the police while driving and informed them. The goons continued to chase her and attempting to block her for a few kilometers. She sped thru all red lights, but had to stop at a signal as there were cars stopped there. She swerved thru the traffic and the stalkers followed her brazenly. One of the goons jumped put and tried to enter her car. She somehow maneuvered an escape while honking continuously. police guys from a PCR ran to apprehend the goons.
They called us, and we went to the police station in sector 26. The filing of the complaint and their medical examination etc took four hours. But the FIR was finally lodged and the goons arrested.
Chandigarh police was pretty efficient and helpful. They intercepted the goons, were responsive to Varnika’s distress calls, and were neutral in filing the complaint.
We are thankful that she survived this ordeal. The goons had a very clear intention of abducting her, and she escaped due to her courage and presence of mind, but it was a very close call, and her trauma is unimaginable. I suppose it will take her a long time to go back to a normal life.
As a father of two daughters, I feel compelled to take this matter to its logical conclusion. The goons must be punished, and the law must take its course. As would be expected, the goons are from influential families. We all know most such cases of harassment go unpunished and even unreported. Most people would not want or dare to take on goons from influential families. I feel if people with some privileges like us cannot stand up to such criminals, nobody in India can.
More importantly, I will be failing in my duty as a father to my daughter if I did not stand with her completely in this matter.
I am sharing this with you all for two reasons. One, to give a true and clear picture of what happened. Two, to get some assurance of support in case its needed.
Our clear intention is to bring the culprits to book. We do not intend to harm the families or relatives. However, we know it’s not going to be an easy struggle.
The possibility of harassment and witch-hunting, threats and even physical harm is undeniable, even though unlikely.
Influential families can sometimes take desperate measures to discredit or disable the complainants. Sane friends may advise us against our course of action. We may be foolhardy.
However, I know that the trauma and hurt my daughter has undergone cannot be undone. If we do not persist in trying to bring the guilty to justice, more and more daughters will suffer this hurt. Maybe some may not be as lucky as Varnika.
Someone has to stand up. We are standing. So long as we can.
With agency inputs