‘Slapped, kicked, touched inappropriately': Attacked Laxmi Nagar businessman's wife alleges sex assault

IN a shocking incident from due east Delhi's Laxmi Nagar, a 52-year-old man of affairs and his fellowship, including his married woman and boy, were assaulted by a group of men over a dispute related to the ownership of a gym in their basement.A series of videos of the incident has gone viral on social media platforms. The visuals showed that the men dragged the businessman's 26-year-old son out of his ground-floor flat, hurling abuses, stripping him naked in the street, and repeatedly kicking him and hitting his face with a shoe, HT reported earlier.The businessman's wife spoke to HT and alleged that her husband was also stripped naked and beaten with an iron rod inside the gym. She further alleged that she was also sexually assaulted.‘Slapped me, kicked me, pulled my hair’"My son was assaulted naked. He kept pleading with folded hands...people were watching. Is this less than a rape?" the 50-year-old said, adding that the incident was deeply humiliating for the family.She said that when the accused men arrived, "they started assaulting my husband"."When I tried to save him, they slapped me and kicked me. They pulled my hair and pushed me, due to which I fell on the ground. They also touched me inappropriately," the woman said.ALSO READ | 'Mixed dhatura with sweets': Laxmi Nagar man confesses to killing mother, two siblingsShe further stated that she ran to the Laxmi Nagar police station for help, adding that while she was away, the attackers dragged her son out of the house and continued the assault.Dispute over gym ownershipIn 2016, she said, the family hired Satish Yadav alias Pintoo, who is one of the accused in this assault matter, as a caretaker for the gym they set up in the basement. She alleged that he gradually took over and refused to leave the premises despite being served multiple legal notices.She said that when the ground floor of the house was flooded with water on Friday afternoon, the family tried to reach out to Pintoo to unlock the gym, but he didn't respond. "As the property belongs to us, we went to remove the lock," she said, adding that it was at that moment that Pintoo and the others arrived.An FIR has been registered in this regard under Bharatiya Nyaya Sanhita sections 115 (voluntarily causing hurt), 126 (wrongful restraint), 329 criminal trespass, 333 (house-trespass after preparation of hurt), 74 (assault or criminal force to woman with intent to outrage her modesty), 75 (sexual harassment), and 351 (criminal intimidation).Deputy commissioner of police (east) Abhishek Dhania said Satish Yadav was arrested, while the other accused are at large, HT reported. He added that continuous efforts are being made to apprehend the other accused persons.