Nagpur: Ajni Police have registered a case against a 31-year-old man from Gondia for allegedly stalking, assaulting, and threatening a 23-year-old woman after she refused to maintain contact with him.

According to the FIR, the complainant became acquainted with the accused, Rakesh alias Bhandarkar Rekhlal Ramesh (31), a resident of Surya Tola Ward, Adivasi Gowari Chowk, Gondia, through Instagram in 2021. Police said the accused is the maternal uncle of the complainant’s hostel friend. Their acquaintance reportedly began on Instagram and they remained in contact over phone calls.

Police said that on July 16, the accused called the woman and asked her to meet him near Akshay Medical Store at Medical Chowk in the Ajni area. During the meeting, he allegedly questioned her about why she had stopped talking to him and why she was not answering his phone calls.

According to the complaint, as the woman attempted to leave and boarded an autorickshaw to return to her hostel, the accused allegedly forcibly pulled her scarf, grabbed her hand, and snatched her spectacles. She managed to retrieve her spectacles from him and proceeded to her hostel.

The FIR further states that the accused allegedly followed her to the hostel and threatened to ruin her education, causing her fear and distress.

Based on the woman’s complaint, Ajni Police registered Crime No. 333/2026 under Sections 74 and 351(2) of the Bharatiya Nyaya Sanhita (BNS).  The investigation into the case is ongoing.