INDORE: The Board of Control for Cricket in India (BCCI) secretary Devajit Saikia expressed his discontent with the “unfortunate” incident where two Australian players, competing at the ongoing Women’s World Cup, allegedly faced “inappropriate behaviour” in Indore.
Saikia expressed his displeasure about the entire incident and praised the state police for swift action and said, “Very unfortunate incident, and this type of incident brings disrepute. I appreciate the state police for their prompt action to nab the culprit. Let the law take its course to punish the culprit”.
Earlier, Indore’s Additional Deputy Commissioner of Police (Crime Branch) Rajesh Dandotiyan confirmed that around 11 am on Thursday, two Australian women’s cricketers left their team hotel and headed to a cafe. It was during this phase that the two Australian cricketers suffered from “inappropriate behaviour” by the accused Aqeel, who hails from Azad Nagar.
SHOCKING NEWS FROM INDORE 💔
Two Australian women cricketers were stalked, molested in Indore; accused held.
As per reports, they were heading out to a cafe when the molester allegedly touched one of them inappropriately and rode off.#CricketTwitter #CWC25 pic.twitter.com/w6v0fbADYZ
— Female Cricket (@imfemalecricket) October 25, 2025
“The security officers of the women’s Australian cricket team filed a complaint that two members of the team faced inappropriate behaviour. An FIR was registered, and the accused was identified and arrested following an intensive strategic operation. The accused Aqueel is a resident of Azadnagar. He has been charged under Sections 74 and 78 of the BNS. The incident occurred around 11 am on October 23, when members of the women’s Australian cricket team were walking towards a cafe from their hotel. We are examining if there were any shortfalls in the security protocols”, he said.
#WATCH | MP | Two members of the women’s Australian Cricket team were allegedly molested while they were on their way to a cafe from their hotel in Indore on 23rd October
Additional DCP Crime Branch, Rajesh Dandotiya says, “The Security officers of the women’s Australian Cricket… pic.twitter.com/ekeLjtxxI2
— ANI (@ANI) October 25, 2025
The Australian team’s management security complained about the “inappropriate behaviour” faced by the two players, and an FIR was subsequently registered.
Meanwhile, Shiv Sena (UBT) MP Priyanka Chaturvedi weighed in on the “disgraceful” act and highlighted the failure to provide safe spaces for women. “Disgraceful. We boast about economic growth, but, we continue to fail providing safe spaces for women. What a shameful act”, Priyanka Chaturvedi wrote on X.
The Indor police are investigating the security protocol loophole that may have led to the incident. (ANI)
