Police clueless about Haryana ex-top cop’s whereabouts

YAMUNANAGAR - Haryana Police Saturday remained clueless about the whereabouts of former inspector general of police M.S. Ahlawat, booked earlier this month for molesting a woman lawyer in May 2002.

“There is no development in this case so far. We are unable to ascertain the whereabouts of Ahlawat so far,” district police chief Sibash Kabiraj told IANS Saturday.

“We had sent our teams to Delhi, Uttar Pradesh and Panchkula to nab him but they failed to find him and have returned. We have issued a look-out notice for Ahlawat and all international airports have been intimated so that he cannot leave the country,” he added.

According to police, Ahlawat was booked June 8 for molesting a woman in May 2002. His anticipatory bail petition was rejected by a court here Wednesday and he went underground Thursday.

However, Ahlawat’s lawyers said that they will approach the Punjab and Haryana High Court in Chandigarh, some 100 km from here, for anticipatory bail.

Police have also pasted a notice outside Ahlawat’s residence in Panchkula, directing him to immediately appear before them.

Police have constituted a Special Investigation Team (SIT) to probe the molestation case registered against Ahlawat, eight years after a woman lawyer first made her complaint.

He was booked following a 2002 complaint of molestation and intimidation of Harvinder Kaur, who lives in this town. She had alleged in her police complaint that she had been sexually harassed by Ahlawat in 2002. He was then superintendent of police of Yamunanagar district.

Kaur said in her complaint that Ahlawat had tried to harass her when she had gone to meet him in connection with one of her court cases in May 2002.

At that time, an inquiry was conducted by a senior police official but he recommended another departmental inquiry against Ahlawat.

Recently, former Haryana director general of police S.P.S. Rathore was convicted of molesting teenager Ruchika Girhotra in 1990. Ruchika committed suicide three years later.

Rathore was awarded 18 months rigorous imprisonment and is currently lodged in Burail jail in Chandigarh.