NGO Alleges Police Helping Rape-Accused Air India Pilot Akshat Sethi: Accused Was Flying Top Right-Wing Party Leaders

Mumbai: A Women’s NGO Bhartiya Nari Adhikar has alleged that the Oshiwara Police are helping the rape-accused Air India pilot Akshat Sethi who is well-connected to the ruling right-wing party at the Centre. The pilot is currently not traceable and absconding.

The pilot was earlier working for a private/corporate group and was flying political leaders of the ruling, right-wing party. Due to this he developed friendship with several top right-wing central leaders. It is under the pressure of these leaders that the Oshiwara Police are not taking the matter seriously. The police have allowed the accused to escape and he has now applied for anticipatory bail. It is surprising that the Mumbai police, which is considered the best police force in the world, could not nab the pilot, although they had knowledge of the case since last Friday, a representative of the NGO said. ALSO READ: Accused claimed he owned a Rs 3 crore bungalow in Goa

Bhavisham Desai of the NGO Bharitya Nari Adhikar alleged that the accused has greased the palms of the cops at the Oshiwara Police Station. Due to this the police are not arresting the rape-accused pilot, she claimed.

“It is likely that huge sums of money have exchanged hands. The police are clearly going slow on the case. They have no intention to arrest the accused and are merely following the rule book. They have given the accused every opportunity to go underground and now it seems the accused will easily get anticipatory bail. It is a complete mockery of the law. Persons with money and contacts can approach the courts and get bail, while the poor are arrested for petty crimes and are thrown into prison for months, where they are not able to secure bail,” the NGO alleged.

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According to the written complaint filed by a well-known and popular Bollywood and Tv actress residing at Lokhandwala in suburban Mumbai, a 33-year-old Air India pilot Akshat Sethi (33) allegedly rape her and also had unnatural sex with her on the pretext of marriage. In addition she has also accused him of breach of trust, criminal intimidation and cheating.

The accused Akshat Sethi is well-connected politically and hails from a political background. His social media timelines are full of photos with senior politicians and Ministers.

The Tv actress (whose name cannot be revealed as per SC guidelines) has been in the Bollywood industry both as a model and an actress for nearly the last 10 years and has done more than 30 films in the South film industry, including Tamil, Telugu and Kannada films, besides print shoots and other advertisement shoots.

She has appeared in Tv serials on prominent channels having done main lead and second lead roles in various Tv serials.

ALSO READ | Rape Accused Air India Pilot Politically Connected, Was Earlier Flying Top National Party Leaders

The victim has also alleged that the accused threatened her with dire consequences and death if she tried to make a noise about the matter. He boasted that he knows every politician in the country and has flown Prime Ministers and Presidents in his career as a pilot. He said he has many women who sleep with him because of his power and contacts and that I was only small fry for him and he could just wipe me off the face of the earth with a mere swipe.

He even tried to deny that we had sex or that he had forcefully and without my consent penetrated me and had unnatural sex with me without my consent. Joh karna hein, woh kar lo, he said and pushed me out of his house, the victim alleged.

The police registered an FIR (CR No. 24 of 2021) u/s 376, 417 for rape and cheating against the accused pilot on Monday, but the pilot had gone missing on Sunday itself.