TTE held for molesting 6-year-old

The girl was returning from a summer vacation in Ooty in Cheran Express from Coimbatore on Sunday night when the incident occurred.

The child’s father, who woke up to use the restroom around 2 am when the train crossed Salem, was shocked to see a man clad in white on his daughter’s berth and misbehaving with her. He confronted the person and beat him. Others passengers woke up in the commotion and helped secure the man. 

The accused identified himself as travelling ticket examiner (TTE) Anish Kumar and claimed that he had found a mobile phone lying on the floor and was trying to pick it up when the girl’s father caught him.

The passengers, however, refused to believe him as the child’s father said that he saw the TTE misbehaving with his daughter and alerted the railway helpline. Later, he was handed over to railway police at Jolarpet railway station. After interrogation, he was booked under Pocso Act and remanded in judicial custody. Sources in the police said that a chargesheet would be filed within three days.