Woman, who helped rescue minor from harassment on train, says her video led to arrest of suspect

A woman, who helped rescue a six-year-old girl from an alleged act of harassment aboard a train in Kerala, on Sunday said she videographed the accused persons suspicious behaviour on her mobile phone, which later helped police identify and arrest him.

A woman, who helped rescue a six-year-old girl from an alleged act of harassment aboard a train in Kerala, on Sunday said she videographed the accused person's suspicious behaviour on her mobile phone, which later helped police identify and arrest him. Veena, who witnessed the incident aboard the Palakkad-Thoothukudi Palaruvi Express near Thenmala in the early hours of May 7, recounted how she intervened after becoming suspicious of the man's conduct. The shocking incident occurred when the child from Tamil Nadu was travelling with her grandfather and was asleep in the train compartment, she said. The accused, a resident of Gandhi Nagar in Ayathil area of Kollam, was arrested on Friday, police said. Veena, a co-passenger, said she first became alert after the accused allegedly tried to disturb her while she was resting. ''While I was asleep, he first tried to harass me,'' she told the media on Sunday. She alleged that the man later moved towards another section of the compartment where a family was asleep and took the child, wrapped in a bedsheet, onto his lap. Initially believing the child to be related to him, Veena said she became suspicious after observing his behaviour and confirmed with another passenger that the girl was not connected to the accused. ''I became suspicious because of his behaviour, so I asked the passenger sitting near me. The co-passenger said the child was not his,'' she said. Veena said she then recorded a video on her mobile phone as evidence and confronted the man after allegedly noticing him behaving inappropriately towards the child. She later alerted fellow passengers and the police was subsequently informed, which led to the accused being traced and arrested, sources added. The accused, who is employed at a poultry shop, was arrested in Kollam on Friday and booked under relevant provisions of the Protection of Children from Sexual Offences (POCSO) Act and the Bharatiya Nyaya Sanhita, police said.