Karnataka: Police file suo moto case over Udupi hidden camera incident

Udupi Superintendent of Police said that two separate cases have been registered in connection with the incident and investigation is in progress.

The Malpe police on Wednesday registered two suo motu cases following an uproar over the alleged filming of girl students in the washroom of a private college in the city.

The incident snowballed into a major issue after the police barged into the house of activist Rashmi Samanth who tweeted about the incident.

Later, BJP leaders came out in support of Rashmi and condemned the police for adopting pressure tactics to silence the activist.

Superintendent of Police Akshay Hakay said two separate first information reports (FIRs) have been registered in connection with the incident.

Based on a complaint from Malpe station Sub Inspector Sushma Bhandari, a case was filed against three students for recording a video of a student in the washroom and against the college management for attempting to outrage the modesty of a woman by violating her privacy and failing to furnish the details.

Another case was registered against One India Kannada YouTube channel for allegedly uploading a morphed video masquerading as the video clip recorded in the washroom of the college with the help of a hidden camera and against one Kalu Singh Chouhan for allegedly uploading the morphed video on his Twitter account (both One India Kannada and Chouhan have subsequently deleted the videos).

According to the FIR, the students staged a protest on the college grounds on July 20 at 12.30 pm.

SI Sushma Bhandari, during the visit to the college, was informed about the secret filming in the washroom by the students. Three girl students had placed the mobile cameras to record the video of a girl student. But they ended up filming another girl student pursuing a different course in the college. The three students later apologised to the student and deleted the video clip in her presence.

“The college management had confiscated mobile phones from the students and had suspended them on July 19,” Sushma said in her complaint.

Kateel flays govt

Meanwhile, BJP state president Nalin Kumar Kateel on Wednesday condemned the incident.

In a series of tweets, he sought to know whether recording the video and sharing it with others is an act of childishness.

The Congress is misusing the administrative machinery, he charged.

NCW member Khushbu to conduct inquiry

Actor and National Commission for Women (NCW) member Kushbu Sundar will conduct an inquiry into the incident on Thursday. After reaching Udupi, Khushbu, in a tweet, said “In Udupi. Investigations are on. Meeting the police now and getting first-hand reports. Different stories, different theories, different conclusions, fake WhatsApp forwards need to stop.”