Thaindian News

Panaji, Dec 5 (IANS) A complaint filed by a Russian woman alleging rape by a Goa politician would be probed by the state crime branch, a senior police official said Saturday.
“Yes, we have transferred the case to the crime branch today (Saturday),” Director General of Police Bhimsain Bassi told IANS.

The 25-year-old Russian woman had accused John Fernandes, a local politician, of spiking her drinks and raping her in his vehicle, after returning from dinner at a shack on Colva beach in south Goa.

The victim said that she was with her friend, a girl, on the night of Dec 1 when she was offered a lift by Fernandes and the trio ended up having a dinner at a nearby shack in Colva, 30 km from here.

When they were heading back home in Fernandes’ car, she felt giddy and then Fernandes tried to rape her. But somehow she managed to fend off his advances, the victim said in her letter to Russian Consulate.

The victim said: “I was harassed for almost three-and-half hours at Colva police station when I approached with the complaint Dec 2.”

The victim works as a liaison officer for Leela, a five star resort in South Goa.

Vikram Varma, the legal representative here for the Mumbai-based Russian consulate, has accused the police of trying to pressurise the complainant to water down her case.

“The officials told her that she would lose her visa if she went and complained against the accused, who they said was an ‘influential person’,” Varma said.