The complaint came to light in February and Shimla Police have now booked a case against Jeetendra.

Veteran actor Jeetendra, 75, has been booked by the Shimla police on charges of molestation on his cousin’s complaint.

“We have received a written complaint and a case has been registered under section 354 (assault or criminal force to woman with intent to outrage her modesty) of the Indian Penal Code against Jeetendra at the Women Police Station in New Shimla. A probe has been initiated,” said Omapati Jamwal, Shimla superintendent of police, on Wednesday. The maximum sentence under the section is two-year jail term.

The woman filed a two-page complaint on February 7, alleging that she was molested by Jeetendra in 1971 in a Shimla hotel when she was 18. The complaint was send by a Delhi- based lawyer to the office of the director general of police. It was later forwarded to the SP’s office for investigation.

The SP said the police was in touch with the complainant through video conferencing, and a case was registered after her statement was recorded.

The woman told the police that Jeetendra had arrived in a car at her residence in New Delhi with his driver and two other colleagues. Later they all drove to Shimla where the actor was shooting for a film. The complaint alleged that the actor, who was in inebriated condition, took her to his hotel room and tried to molest her. The complainant has so far not revealed the name of the hotel.

The police said the case will be initiated under the provision of the section which was applicable at the time of incident occurred and not as per the amendments or additions made to it.

Jeetendra’s lawyer rubbished the allegations as “baseless and ridiculous”. In an earlier statement, his lawyer said Jeetendra categorically denies any such incident took place.

“...Such baseless, ridiculous and fabricated claims cannot be entertained by any court of law or the law enforcement agencies after a span of almost 50 years. The Statute has provided a justice delivery system through the Courts, and the Limitation Act 1963 was specifically enacted to ensure that all genuine complaints are made within a maximum time limit of three years, so that a proper investigation is carried out and timely justice is delivered,” read a statement issued by advocate Rizwan Siddiquee in February 2018.

Efforts to reach Jeetendra went unanswered.

Jeetendra, now 75, is a well-known name in the Hindi film industry. He is also a film producer and has daughter Ekta and son Tusshar with wife Shobhaa.

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