Crime Branch assistant sub-inspector Umendra Mishra, who was posted at the headquarters of South Eastern Central Railway (SECR) in Bilaspur, 110 km from here, was arrested Tuesday after the woman lodged a written complaint that she was physically assaulted by a man in uniform.
The incident took place in the air-conditioned compartment of the Mumbai-bound Geetanjali Express Monday night.
Bridget Hanna, who is doing her PhD from Harvard University and is a member of the Bhopal Group for Information and Action (BGIA) working for the victims of the 1984 Bhopal gas tragedy, boarded the train at Tata Nagar for Nagpur.
The incident occurred after two people, identifying themselves as GRP (government railway police) personnel, boarded the train at the Jhalsugda station around 1.00 a.m. Monday.
Mishra apparently went into the coach, in which Bridget was travelling, on the pretext of arranging his luggage. Acting under the impression that Henna was alone, he passed lewd comments and tried to molest her.
Henna said she woke up Satinath Sarangi, the convenor of the BGIA who was travelling with her. "But by that time the person in question walked away," Henna told IANS in Bhopal.
Mishra was nabbed by a Railway Protection Force (RPF) constable who also helped Henna lodge a complaint at the Raipur station.
According to Deputy Inspector General Pawan Deo, Mishra has been granted conditional bail. He said Mishra was travelling without a ticket and had repeatedly assaulted the girl.
