Man held for sexually assaulting girl in auto, court sends to JC

The West District Court on Thursday sent a man to judicial custody after he was arrested on Thursday for allegedly sexually harassing a girl inside an auto-rickshaw in Agartala on Wednesday.

West District Superintendent of Police (SP) Kiran Kumar said that the female student was en route to Tripura University from GB Bazar in an auto-rickshaw when the incident took place.

"Another passenger onboard outraged the modesty of the female student. An FIR was filed on Wednesday, accusing the man of sexually assaulting the girl. We have also reviewed video footage related to the incident. A manhunt was launched immediately after the FIR was lodged," the SP said.

He further informed that a special team was formed to trace the accused.

"After analysing CCTV footage and other details, we arrested him from the Battala area of Agartala on Thursday morning," he added.

The accused, identified as Shayamal Das, a resident of Udaipur in Gomati District, was later produced before the court, which remanded him to judicial custody.

The incident sparked massive outrage on social media after a video, shot by the victim herself, went viral showing the man sexually harassing her inside the auto.

The matter gained traction after Tripura royal scion Pradyot Kishore Manikya Debbarma shared the incident on Facebook and urged the Youth Tipra Federation—the youth wing of the Tipra Motha Party—to take the matter up with the police.

The incident has since triggered a wave of protests online, with many young people—both girls and boys—condemning the act and demanding stringent action against the accused.

Describing her ordeal, the victim said she boarded the auto from the GB Bazar area, where three passengers were already present.

"I sat in the corner, then there was a lady, and then this man. We had just reached Shamali Bazar when he touched my shoulder inappropriately. I directly confronted him and asked him to remove his hand. He got hyper and started shouting. I told the lady sitting between us what happened, and she scolded him. Even the driver reprimanded him. I thought the matter had ended, but when we reached Battala and the lady got off, the man resumed his inappropriate behaviour," she recounted.

"I asked the driver to stop and let him get down. He then began threatening me. I was so scared that I started crying and shaking. The driver made him get down, but he continued running after the auto. I pleaded with the driver for help. He stayed with me and gathered some local people. Only then did the man stop following me," she added.

"This has left me traumatised. It raises a terrifying question—how am I ever going to feel safe again, especially in broad daylight?" she said.