A vehicle damaged in the stone pelting on Monday. A Telegraph picture

Nagaon, Nov. 17: A police officer posted in Assam’s Karbi Anglong district was today suspended for allegedly molesting a minor after her family lodged a complaint and an angry mob blocked National Highway 36 to demand his arrest.

Sub-inspector Abdul Faruki, 40, second in command to the officer-in-charge of Manja police station, 40km from the Karbi Anglong district headquarters of Diphu, allegedly used to molest his 14-year-old maid frequently.

According to the complaint, Faruki’s behaviour forced the girl, who has been working in his house for six months, to leave often but every time he would bring her back and continue the torture.

She last fled his residence a week ago and told her family about the police officer’s “misdeeds”. They decided not to send her back.

This morning, Faruki went to the girl’s house again and forcibly took her with him. He even allegedly assaulted one of her family members when they refused to send her with him.

Around 11.30am, the girl’s family — which comes from neighbouring Nagaon district but lives in a rented house at Manja in the vicinity of the police station — went to the police station with a few people to lodge a complaint. As the word spread, a large number of people gathered at the police station.

The mob damaged a Maruti Gypsy parked on the police station premises and marched to Faruki’s quarters. They threw stones at his house, but Faruki had left the place by this time, leaving the girl behind. The situation took a turn for the worse as the mob, now more than 2,000-strong, blocked National Highway 36, demanding Faruki’s arrest. The police station is located along the highway.

Traffic came to a halt as the angry protesters continued the blockade till a high-level team of Karbi Anglong police, led by additional superintendent of police (headquarters), Nityananda Goswami, reached the spot at 2.30pm.

“Investigations are on. A case has been registered after receiving the FIR. The sub-inspector has been placed under suspension. The victim has been sent to Diphu for medical examination. He (Faruki) will definitely be arrested if the medical report and the findings of our investigation go against him,” Goswami said.

Faruki, who is from Nagaon district, has been serving in Karbi Anglong for more than a decade. He joined Manja police station as the second officer a year ago.

This is the second case of sexual harassment on a minor by security personnel in Karbi Anglong in the last three years. A jawan of the Diphu-based Assam Rifles training camp had allegedly raped a minor Karbi girl in 2005.