A human resources manager of a food and beverage service firm operating at Kempegowda International Airport has been booked for allegedly sexually harassing a 26-year-old woman employee, Bengaluru police said on Monday.
The case was registered at the BIAL police station after the woman filed a complaint against the manager. The FIR alleges that the employee, who joined the company’s customer service department at the airport in May, faced harassment and privacy violations from September 24 onwards.
According to the FIR, the HR manager allegedly took away the woman’s mobile phone and checked it, restricted her from speaking to others and insisted that she show him a tattoo on her chest. The allegations have been recorded in the complaint and have not been established by a court.
The complainant further alleged that the manager called her into a room at her workplace on September 30, stripped himself and exposed his private parts while pressuring her to do the same. She said she left the room, informed her friends about the incident and sought their advice before approaching the police.
Police registered the FIR under Sections 78(2) and 79 of the Bharatiya Nyaya Sanhita. Section 78(2) concerns stalking, while Section 79 relates to a word, gesture or act intended to insult the modesty of a woman, according to the FIR details reported by Deccan Chronicle.
The airport workplace involved is operated by a food and beverage service company, and the complaint relates to conduct allegedly taking place during the employee’s work. The case brings workplace safety into focus in an airport environment where food service, customer assistance, retail and other contracted operations rely on large numbers of employees working across shifts and managed through private service providers.
Police issued a notice to the accused HR manager and recorded his statement, the report said. Further investigation is underway. The available report does not state whether the accused has been arrested or provide a response from the company or the accused to the allegations.
