Tanushree writes to top cop, seeks probe by crime branch

Actor Tanushree Dutta on Tuesday urged the Mumbai police commissioner to order a fresh probe into her allegation of molestation against actor Nana Patekar.

Dutta demanded that the closure report filed by the police, saying that there was no evidence against Patekar, be scrapped, and the Crime Branch should take over the case.

Suburban Oshiwara police, which probed the case, in June this year filed a 'B-summary' report in the Andheri metropolitan magistrate's court. A B-summary report, also called a closure report, is filed when police do not find any evidence against the accused to file a charge sheet.

Dutta's complaint against Patekar in October 2018 had set off a nationwide '#MeToo' movement, during which several well-known personalities were called out for alleged sexual harassment.

Dutta's lawyer Nitin Satpute sent an email to police commissioner Sanjay Barve on Tuesday, seeking a fresh probe by the Crime Branch.

The e-mail complaint claimed that the police did not investigate the alleged incident properly or arrest Patekar either because of fear or the "influence" of the accused.

The police filed a B-summary report despite the evidence provided to them by the complainant, it said.

Dutta had accused Patekar of harassing and misbehaving with her while shooting a song on the sets of the film "Horn Ok Pleasss" in 2008.

Patekar denied all the allegations.

Based on her complaint, a case was registered against Patekar, choreographer Ganesh Acharya, the film's producer Samee Siddiqui and director Rakesh Sarang. But the police later gave them a clean chit.