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Himachal Pradesh High Court quashes an FIR against veteran Bollywood actor Jeetendra in sexual assault case

In a relief for veteran Bollywood actor Jeetendrathe Himachal Pradesh High Court has dismissed an FIR against him, which alleged that he sexually assaulted his cousin 48 years ago. On Monday, Justice Ajay Mohan Goel quashed the FIR lodged on February 16 last year under section Section 354 (assault or criminal force to woman with intent to outrage her modesty) of the IPC as he found credible the actor's contention that the FIR was "mala fide". Apparently, the woman's daughter had been rejected in an audition by Balaji Motion Pictures Limited run by the Jeetendra's family and hence, she put allegations on him to malign his image. The offence, in such cases, is punishable with maximum imprisonment of two years.

As per a news agency, the judge claimed that he contents of the FIR do not provide ground to proceed against the accused, as they appear to be "vague" and inherently absurd. For the unversed, Jeetendra's cousin filed an FIR alleging an assault which took place in 1971 when the actor took her to a room at a hotel in Shimla. She had claimed that the room had two beds but Jeetendra joined them and tried to outrage her modesty in a drunken state. After her allegations, Jeetendra sought quashing of the FIR by filing a petition. which mentioned that his cousin was enraged as her daughter was not selected for a role. 

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Since it was evident from the records that the daughter of Jeetendra's cousin did give an audition for Balaji Motion Pictures Limited, the Court said, "This lends credibility to the contention that the lodging of the FIR was an act of mala fide and a result of the daughter of his cousin having been rejected," further adding that the allegations are "so absurd and inherently improbable, on the basis of which, no prudent person can ever reach a just conclusion that there is sufficient ground for proceeding against the accused."

(Source: PTI)

 

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