Thane Court Convicts RTO Clerk For Stalking Female Colleague, Awards Jail Term & Fine
The Thane’s Chief Judicial Magistrate (CJM) has passed a strong verdict in a case of outraging the modesty of the women, thereby upholding the dignity and safety of women in workplaces, thereby convicted a 35-year-old junior clerk working with the Regional Transport Office (RTO) in Vashi, for stalking and outraging the modesty of a female colleague. The court sentenced Santoshkumar Subhash Sakolkar, a resident of Nerul, Navi Mumbai, to six months of simple imprisonment and imposed a fine of Rs 25,000, to be paid as compensation to the victim.
The court presided by Magistrate S.K. Fokmare observed that although the accused was a government servant, he failed in his duty to uphold the dignity of his office. “The accused should have maintained the sanctity of his post and protected the dignity of the institution,” the court noted in its judgment.
“The evidence on record demonstrates the series of events which clearly points out that the accused kept on stalking victim in and out of working place. Thus, there is no reason to disbelieve the evidence come on record. The defence failed to show why victim prosecuted the accused for such an offence. Generally in our society woman don’t come forward to fight against men for their sexual overtures under apprehension that society would blame them instead. Thus, the evidence on record is sufficient as well as beyond all reasonable doubt to hold that the accused has committed the offence of stalking,”the court held.
The incident dates back to 2015 when the victim, also a junior clerk, was transferred from the Vashi RTO to the Thane RTO. According to the prosecution, Sakolkar initiated unwelcome contact by sending WhatsApp messages to the woman, which she ignored. Rumors about their alleged relationship began circulating in the office, prompting both the victim and office authorities to warn Sakolkar.
Despite repeated warnings and clear signs of disinterest from the victim, Sakolkar continued to harass her by standing in her way, following her inside office premises, and eventually even stalking her during her daily commute by local train. The harassment caused significant fear and mental distress to the victim, who eventually informed her family. Her husband also witnessed the accused following her.
Following a formal complaint by the victim on January 22, 2016, the matter was escalated from the RTO to the Thane Nagar Police Station, where an FIR was registered under Section 354D of the Indian Penal Code (IPC) for stalking. After a thorough investigation, a charge sheet was filed, and the trial commenced.
In his defense, Sakolkar claimed false implication due to office rivalry. However, the court rejected this theory, finding no evidence of previous enmity. The court emphasized that the testimonies of the victim and her colleagues were consistent and credible, even in the absence of electronic evidence such as WhatsApp messages.
The court held Sakolkar guilty under Section 354D of the IPC and sentenced him to six months in jail. In case of default in payment of the fine, the accused will undergo an additional one month of simple imprisonment.
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