A Bengaluru airport HR manager has been booked for allegedly sexually harassing a 26-year-old woman employee at a food and beverage service firm operating at Kempegowda International Airport, police said on Monday. An FIR was registered at the BIAL police station after the woman submitted a complaint against the employee’s conduct at her workplace.
According to the FIR, the woman joined the company’s customer service department at the airport in May. She alleged that the HR manager took away her mobile phone and checked it, restricted her from speaking to others and insisted that she show him a tattoo on her chest.
The complainant further alleged that the harassment and alleged violations of her privacy began on September 24. The FIR stated that on September 30, the accused called her into a room at the workplace, stripped himself and exposed his private parts while pressuring her to do the same.
The woman told police that she left the room, informed her friends about the incident and sought their advice before approaching the police. She subsequently lodged a complaint at the BIAL police station, leading to the registration of the FIR.
Police booked the accused under Sections 78(2) and 79 of the Bharatiya Nyaya Sanhita. Section 78(2) concerns stalking, while Section 79 relates to words, gestures or acts intended to insult the modesty of a woman, according to the police account cited in the report.
Police issued a notice to the HR manager and recorded his statement. The accused has not been reported as arrested. Further investigation is underway, police said.
The case places the conduct of an airport-based employer and the safety of staff in customer-facing service operations under investigation. The available police account does not state whether the company has initiated an internal inquiry or identify any action taken by the airport operator. The next steps will depend on the ongoing investigation and the evidence collected by police.
