The domestic tourists coming from neighbouring states to Goa either for work or fun preferring to stay near the North Goa beach belts, and most of them (men) are involved in various criminal activities in the state. There are number of cases registered against many domestic tourists for their misbehavior with the foreigners (female) in North Goa. Here is one such example of harassment of a Russian tourist by the outsider and it shows to what level one can go to harass the foreigners.
According to a report in the Hindustan Times, a Russian woman tourist, who has been residing in Goa for two years, was stalked and slapped by an unidentified bike rider in Arpora after she refused his offer of a lift. What is further disturbing to know is, as the tourist has alleged, that the police have not acted on her complaint and her attacker is on the loose, even after five days since the attack on May 15.
Speaking to the Hindustan Times on May 21, the Russian tourist told them she was returning home on the foot in the afternoon on May 15, after visiting the ATM, when she was followed by a man on a two-wheeler in a white T-shirt and dark blue jeans, who persisted in offering her a lift.
“He was following me and stopping every five-ten meters and asking me can I sit on his bike, can he drop me home. So I was saying ‘No, no thank you’ and I was just ignoring him. He was always looking around to see that no one is around,” she said adding that the stalker continued to harass her demanding that the site on his bike, which she pointedly refused. “He asked me ‘Can I drop you? I said: ‘Why are you following me? I don’t need anyone to follow me because I live right here and I can walk alone,” she added. However, instead of leaving her he just drove straight in front, took a u-turn and came back towards her. “He went just next to me and slapped me badly,” she recalls, while clarifying that she was not improperly dressed.
In a report in the Herald, Goa, the Russian tourist alleges that though she had filed a police complaint with Calangute Police station on the same day, the police have registered her complaint as a non-cognizable offense and have not done anything in the matter from the date of filing the complaint. Frustrated by their inaction, she, once again, on Wednesday night, went to Calangute Police station to demand justice.
According to Hindustan Times, although the incident was recorded on her mobile camera it does not show the face of the accused. Visibly upset that the police have done nothing to nab the suspect even after five days, she told the media, “They didn’t even ask me about video pictures or the whole story or anything. They didn’t need it. It has been five days.”
Sources according to this report indicate that she seems to be getting more help from friends and the locals. “I’m doing what I can and asking help from local people, people who are around me and my friends and they are helping me more than the police, but it shouldn’t be like this because Goa is a tourist place. How can the police be so irresponsible in tourist place?” she queried.
According to Herald, the Russian tourist who had been staying in Goa for two years was now due to leave India in five days. “I was slapped so badly that I have marks. I have picture and videos of him slapping me. The police are not acting in this case. I have collected footages from the hotels near me. When I went to the police station they told me that the person who registered my complaint was not there and hence I would have to come back the following day. I want this issue to be brought to the notice of the concerned authorities so that other tourists do not face a similar problem,” the victim said.
Speaking to Herald, Calangute PI Nolasco Raposo informed that a non-cognizable case was registered at Calangute Police station on May 15. The victim met him on Wednesday late evening and was further directed to the Anjuna police station since the crime occurred at Arpora.
“She did not reveal many details or about video footage at the time of the complaint. The victim was slapped at Arpora and this area comes under Anjuna police station jurisdiction. Subsequently, she mentioned about the assault. She has secured the presence of Social Activist, Tara Kerkar. A detailed statement will be recorded at Anjuna Police Station,” Raposo said.
When contacted the Anjuna PI Navlesh Dessai said that the victim had come to the police station around 10 pm and they were verifying the details and accordingly if needed a complaint would be registered at Anjuna.
Alarmingly, attacks on foreign tourists, particularly females, in this tourist paradise have been on the rise. Over the last decade, there have been several cases of rape and molestation of foreign tourists and reports indicate that around 245 foreign tourists have lost their lives in Goa, often under mysterious circumstances.
Last December a 42-year old British lady was raped and robbed while walking home from the railway station near Palolem beach. The police nabbed the accused on the same. And in January earlier that year, a man was arrested for molesting an American tourist, after she posted his picture on social media. The brutal rape and murder of young Irish tourist Danielle McLaughlin in Palolem, by Vikat Bhagat, is another gruesome reminder of the dark side of our sunny state of Goa.
Source: The Hindustan Times | Heraldo
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