Cops fail to trace Rakhi, reject reports of arrest

Punjab Police on Tuesday rejected reports that actress Rakhi Sawant, against whom a local Ludhiana court has issued arrest warrant for her alleged objectionable remarks against sage Valmiki, has been arrested, saying she was not found at her address in Mumbai.

“Rakhi Sawant has not been arrested. Warrant of arrest has been issued against her by the court... A police team from Ludhiana went to Mumbai to execute the warrant, but she has not been arrested,” Ludhiana Police Commissioner Kunwar Vijay Pratap Singh said.

Ludhiana Deputy Commissioner of Police Dhruman Nimbley said, “A police team from Ludhiana had gone to Mumbai to execute a warrant issued by a court here. However, she was not found at the given address. She has not been arrested yet.”

He said police will report the matter to the court.

The warrant was issued by a local court on March 9 on the basis of a complaint filed against her for allegedly hurting religious sentiments of the Valmiki community with her comments on a programme on a private television channel last year.

Sawant had failed to appear before the court during the last hearing of the case on March 9.

On the court’s instruction, a two member team of Ludhiana police had left for Mumbai with arrest warrants on Sunday.

The next hearing of the case was fixed for April 10.

Photograph: Pradeep Bandekar