The case gets murkier with suspect saying the two referred to him by an acquaintance, expected him to take care of the room rent after he entertained them during the day
HIGHLIGHTS
- Jaipur Police on Thursday got two-day remand for Rishiraj Singh
- The general manager of ITC Rajputana is accused of molesting 2 Mexican tourists.
- The tourists were referred to Singh by a common friend
Jaipur Police on Thursday got two-day remand for Rishiraj Singh the general manager of ITC Rajputana who is accused of attempting to molest two Mexican tourists.
The tourists were referred to Singh by a common friend and the incident took place in one of the rooms in the hotel on the night of June 26. However, sources close to him said that the incident was actually a fall out between the two parties after they were refused a free accommodation.
Singh had taken over as the GM of the prestigious hotel a few months ago. The incident has sent shockwaves across the tourism sector and has come to a matter of embarrassment for the group. The incident took place at a time when several diplomats were in the city for an event organised by Confederation of Indian (CII).
HOW IT ALL BEGAN
Singh’s friend identified as Ravi Kejriwal, a resident of Delhi, called him asking him to take care of two Mexican women during their day-long visit to Jaipur. The women were between 25 and 30 years of age. One of the women had visited India in the past too.
Singh was expected to let them use a room in the hotel for a while to wash and change in the morning. He joined them over breakfast before the two left for sightseeing in Jaipur.
When the two returned to the hotel in the evening, the two with along Singh had drinks. It was at this time that the two expressed intention to stay for the night and Singh offered them a room at a cost of Rs 7,500 with additional taxes.
The women said that the money would be transferred online for which Rishiraj also sent them a payment gateway link. The two also said that they would like to go to Narain Niwas, a heritage hotel, later for dinner. Singh had also offered to accompany them to the location.
After the women checked into their rooms, Singh got busy with the farewell dinner of an employee. At around 11 pm, Singh reportedly called one of the women but she did not respond. Singh informed Ravi that the women did not respond to his calls. Singh told that Ravi that he could not make arrangements for their accommodation as they were not responding to his calls.
Ravi reportedly informed Singh that one of the women was chatting with him on WhatsApp and that he could go to meet them at their room. According to sources, Ravi had even sent a screenshot to Singh about his conversation with one of the women.
At around 11.30 pm, Singh went to their room and knocked. While one of the women opened the door, another was taking a bath. Singh was in the room for nearly 10 minutes. According to the police, what happened during those minutes is crucial for the case.
THE ALLEGATIONS
The women alleged that Singh attempted to hug and kiss them and when they got angry and resisted the attempt he left. However, there are conflicting versions of what exactly happened.
One of the women had even called her boyfriend who informed the German embassy. Reportedly, German embassy officials approached the Jaipur police. According to another version, one of the women informed Ravi who reprimanded Singh for his conduct. Incidentally, Singh sent messages to Ravi apologizing saying that he was not himself when the incident took place.
Vikas Pathak, Deputy Commissioner of Police, Jaipur said that the police were alerted by its control room which received a call informing about such an incident in the hotel. He said senior officers rushed to the hotel but the women said they wanted to take the rest. The police meanwhile began investigations and seized the CCTV records to confirm that Rishi Raj had indeed entered the room. The next day morning the police recorded the statement of the women.
Pathak says both the women gave a similar account of what happened and they did not seem to exaggerate. The women denied any instance of rape or molestation but mentioned that Singh attempted to embrace and kiss them. Pathak added that they informed the Mexican embassy about the incident.
Pathak said Singh was also booked for trespassing as he entered the room without their consent. He said he has no idea whether the two shared drinks with the suspect late evening. The police said that it was unclear who informed the control room about the incident.
Singh’s friend told that Singh’s stand has been that he went to their room to tell them not to feel bad about him not being able to take them to the Narayan Niwas. The woman opened the door after looking through the peephole and did not tell him not to come inside. As a GM, he could have used his master key to get into which he did not.
QUARELL OVER PAYMENT
During that conversation, according to Singh’s version, he told them that the hotel had not received their payment to which one of the women, allegedly said, ”were not you supposed to take care of it.” Singh who got suspicious over this later moved out of the room according to his friend.
Pathak said police are taking the statement of Ravi Kejriwal too and scanning mobile phones to put things in place. “However, I have no doubt that both women have spoken the truth and the GM had no business to go to their room when he could have spoken with them from hotel line. Even when he went there, his entering the room is also a sequel to the molestation,” he said.
Pathak said he does not believe in the counter-allegation that women did not want to pay the room bill and said the next morning, some police officers overheard one of the women asking to clear the dues but hotel staff asked them not worry about that. He said it was after Ravi Kejriwal’s call to him that Singh panicked.
Late evening, ITC Rajputana issued the following statement, “safety and comfort of our guests are of paramount importance. We have taken cognizance of the reported incident and in line with our stringent policy of zero tolerance for such reported behaviour, strong and appropriate action is being taken even as the investigation is ongoing. We have extended all cooperation to the authorities.”