'This type of incident brings disrepute.'
The Board of Control for Cricket in India's secretary Devajit Saikia expressed his discontent with the "unfortunate" incident in which two Australian women cricketers, taking part in the ICC Women's Cricket World Cup, were allegedly stalked, and one of them was molested by a motorcycle-borne man in Indore.
Saikia expressed his displeasure about the entire incident and praised the Madhya Pradesh state police for its swift action.
"Very unfortunate incident, and this type of incident brings disrepute. I appreciate the State police for their prompt action to nab the culprit. Let the law take its course to punish the culprit," he told ANI.
The two cricketers had stepped out of their hotel on Thursday morning and were walking towards a cafe when a man on a motorcycle started following them. He allegedly touched one of them inappropriately and rode off, according to a police official.
"The Security officers of the women's Australian Cricket Team filed a complaint that two members of the team faced inappropriate behaviour. An FIR was registered, and the accused was identified and arrested following an Intensive Strategic Operation. The accused Aqueel is a resident of Azadnagar. He has been charged under sections 74 and 78 of the BNS," said Indore's Additional Deputy Commissioner of Police (Addl DCP, Crime Branch) Rajesh Dandotiyan.
"The incident occurred around 11 am on 23rd October, when members of the women's Australian Cricket Team were walking towards a cafe from their hotel. We are examining if there were any shortfalls in the security protocols."
The Australian team's management security complained about the "inappropriate behaviour" faced by the two players, and an FIR was subsequently registered.
Meanwhile, Shiv Sena (UBT) MP Priyanka Chaturvedi weighed in on the "disgraceful" act and highlighted the failure to provide safe spaces for women.
"Disgraceful. We boast about economic growth, but, we continue to fail providing safe spaces for women. What a shameful act," Chaturvedi said on X.
Meanwhile, Cricket Australia released a statement to confirm that two members of the Australian women's team were allegedly "approached and touched inappropriately by a motorcyclist" on Thursday.
"CA can confirm two members of the Australian Women's team were approached and touched inappropriately by a motorcyclist while walking to a cafe in Indore. The matter was reported by team security to police, who are handling the matter," CA said in a statement.