Tanu FIR against Nana & 3 others
Actor Tanushree Dutta has registered a First Information Report against veteran actor Nana Patekar, director Rakesh Sarang, producer Samee Siddiqui and choreographer Ganesh Acharya in the Oshiwara police station for allegedly molesting her in 2008.
The four have been booked under relevant sections of the IPC related to molestation and insulting the modesty of a woman.
The FIR was registered late on Wednesday, hours after a burqa-clad Dutta arrived at the police station in her car, to record her statement against Patekar. Dutta was accompanied by two female witnesses, her hairdresser and make-up artist. The witnesses have corroborated the FIR filed by Dutta, with the sequence of events as detailed by her.
Dutta has complained of sexual harassment by Patekar during the filming of an ‘item’ number in the film, ‘Horn Ok Pleassss’, (2008) and three others of supporting him at that time.
In her statement this time, Dutta highlighted how the Goregaon Police had filed her original complaint in Marathi, a language she does not understand; secondly, the main point, that of sexual harassment, was omitted. “Many parts of my complaint have not been mentioned in the statement. Only the FIR for the offence regarding the damage caused to my car and rioting was registered against a particular mediaperson and the mob.
However, the main grievance of the sexual harassment by the main culprits (mentioned above) was left out in the FIR.”
This time Nitin Satpute, Dutta’s lawyer, insisted on recording the statement in English and Marathi. “The police wrote the statement in Marathi. However, we requested them to write it in English, too, so that the mistake which occurred 10 years ago is not repeated.”
Mumbai police spokesperson Manjunath Singe said that they have registered an FIR under the relevant sections of the law and that an investigation is underway. “As of now, no arrests have been made and we are investigating the case and inquiries are on,” said Additional Commissioner of Police, Manoj Kumar Sharma.
The police will record the testimony of all the witnesses before summoning the accused.
On Tuesday night, Satpute had submitted crucial evidence in the form of documents in support of her complaint letter. The 40-page compilation includes details of the 2008 complaint registered with the Goregaon Police, which talks about the dance sequence in the film, choreographed by Acharya, which Dutta was unhappy with.