Chandigarh NGO head in one-day remand for sodomy

 

Chandigarh, July 12  A well known theatre director and activist for children's rights was on Sunday sent to police remand for one day after his arrest on charges of sodomy and unnatural sex with several people.

Theatre personality Zulfiqar Khan, who runs Chandigarh-based theatre group and NGO 'Theatre Age', was arrested by the Chandigarh Police late Saturday evening.

He was sent to one-day police custody on Sunday by a local court where he was presented.

The police on Sunday raided various places associated with Khan and his activities.

Khan has been accused of having unnatural sex with people associated with his NGO, especially minor children, Sector 11 station house officer (SHO) Narinder Patial said. 

He has been booked under Section 377 of the Indian Penal Code (IPC) and the Protection of Children from Sexual Offences Act (POCSO).

The arrest followed a complaint by one Kanwarpal, who was associated with Khan earlier but later parted ways with the NGO head. Kanwarpal alleged that Khan had been sodomising children over the years. 

A number of photographs were also submitted to the police as evidence. 

Khan's theatre group and NGO, set up in 1992, involves underprivileged children from Chandigarh's slums in theatre and other social activities.

Khan has received several awards for his social work in the past 23 years and is a known figure in theatre and activist circles in and around Chandigarh.