Bengaluru, 9 Dec

A 26-year-old woman working at a private hospital here was allegedly sexually assaulted by her male friend, who sedated her and later blackmailed her with private videos demanding sexual favours, police said on Monday. She also accused him of humiliating her with casteist slurs, they added.

The incident came to light on Friday when the woman filed a complaint with the High Grounds police.

Based on her statement, a case was registered against the accused under sections of rape, sexual assault, criminal intimidation, and outraging the modesty of a woman.

The accused has also been charged under the Scheduled Castes and Scheduled Tribes (Prevention of Atrocities) Act, police said.

According to her complaint, the woman alleged that she met the accused in 2019 while working at a credit card company. He befriended her and later invited her to a family function, where he offered her a drink laced with sedatives. She claimed she became unconscious after consuming the drink, after which he took her to a room, sexually assaulted her, and recorded the act.

She further alleged that he used the video to blackmail her for sexual favours. Although she changed jobs to escape his harassment, he continued to threaten her, saying he would make the video public if she did not comply.

The woman also alleged that he humiliated her with casteist slurs when she objected to his demands and instead asked him to marry her, a senior police officer said.

“Based on the complaint, we have registered a case. All allegations are being thoroughly investigated. However, since the alleged incident, as per the woman’s statement, occurred in RT Nagar, the case will be transferred to the respective jurisdiction,” the officer added. The accused has not been arrested yet.