A 75-year-old man allegedly raped a tribal woman from Odisha, who works as a domestic help, after spiking her juice.
The accused has been identified as K Shivaprasad, a former employee at a government public sector undertaking.
Police has registered an FIR against Sivaprasad and he is absconding now.
The alleged rape took place at Sivaprasad's house in Vytila on October 15 when his wife had gone out. As per reports, a day after the incident, Sivaprasad and his family left to visit the Guruvayur temple.
The FIR was filled on October 17, based on the statement of the 23-year-old woman.
The FIR had been registered under the Bharatiya Nyaya Sanhita Section 74 (Assault or use of criminal force against women with the intent to outrage their modesty).
The victim belongs from Gajapati district of Odisha and has been forced to do domestic work since she was 12 years old by her stepmother. She started working at Sivaprasad's house earlier this month.
After a medical examination, charges of rape were added to the initially registered case.
The incident came to light after the woman reportedly told about her ordeal to her cousin who also works as domestic help in the same district.
The cousin shared the incident with her employer who informed the Centre for Migration and Inclusive Department (CMID) and they rescued her from the house.
The woman, in her complaint, says that Sivaprasad had approached her when she was cleaning the hall at around 11 on October 15, when his wife was not there. He allegedly forced her to drink a glass of juice, and then she began feeling faint.
“He began hugging me and kissing me forcibly while I tried to push him off. I managed to run away to my room, but by then I passed out on my bed. I woke up around 12.30 pm without my clothes on myself and a blanket covering me and I was feeling pain in my private parts. Madam came back by 2 pm. I did not tell her about it. Sir had touched me inappropriately before too, in madam’s absence,” she writes in her complaint.
