An arrest warrant was issued after a judicial probe found Adabor police Sub Inspector Ratan Kumar Halder guilty of harassing the woman.

Dhaka’s Women and Children Repression Prevention Tribunal-4 took cognizance of the probe report on Tuesday and ordered arrest of the policeman.

Amid growing cases of police highhandedness, the woman, wife of a leader of pro-BNP Juba Dal, filed a complaint with the tribunal, which then ordered a judicial probe.

On Feb 10, the investigation panel of Dhaka’s Chief Metropolitan Magistrate Sheikh Hafizur Rahman submitted the report to the Tribunal, which found the allegations to be true.

The victim alleged that SI Halder had sexually harassed her in the pretext of conducting a search.

She said that Halder had stopped her while she was returning home on a rickshaw and ordered her to go to a nearby shop where he conducted the “search”.

She also accused that repeated pleas to have the search conducted by a female official or in the presence of other women of the neighbourhood, or in a police station, were ignored by the SI.

“He also threatened to frame me as a prostitute and Yaba peddler,” she added.

The husband of the victim was detained in connection with a separate incident of violence. He is currently out on bail.

SI Halder, on the other hand, said that he had met the victim at the police station when she had gone there in the past in connection with her husband’s case.

“I just enquired about her husband, nothing more,” he claimed.

Halder was withdrawn from duty following the allegation and the Dhaka Metropolitan Police opened two separate inquiries over the matter.