'Hugged, kissed HR head': Nagpur NGO chief accused of sexual abuse, religious coercion of several young women

NAGPUR: An NGO working for underprivileged children in northwest Nagpur came under scanner after an FIR was registered against its president for alleged sexual abuse of several young women, religious coercion, defamation and cyberstalking.

The accused, Riyaz Fazil Qazi, was arrested immediately after the case was filed, said police.The case, coming close on the heels of alleged sexual and religious harassment case at the TCS Nashik unit and sex scandal at Amravati district's Paratwada, triggered a probe from intelligence agencies. The state Anti-Terrorist Squad (ATS) has kicked off a parallel investigation into the NGO's background, financial trails, and possible links beyond its stated mission of teaching kids from poor families, sources said.

The FIR was registered at Mankapur police station on Saturday around 10pm. Police invoked several sections of the Bharatiya Nyaya Sanhita (BNS), 2023, including Section 74 (assault or criminal force against a woman with intent to outrage her modesty), Sections 75(2), 78(2), 296 (obscene acts), 302(1) for hurting religious sentiments, and defamation under 356(2), along with Section 66-B of the Information Technology Act for unauthorised use of social media account to stalk women.

The main complainant is a 23-year-old woman working as administration and HR head in the NGO since Sept 2023. As per the FIR, on her birthday on July 18, 2024, after office celebrations around 1pm, Qazi allegedly called her to his cabin, hugged her against her will, kissed her forehead and remarked, "I don't want to leave you today". The complainant claimed that she couldn't muster the courage to protest out of fear of losing the joThe survivor further alleged repeated attempts to hug her, including an incident where the accused allegedly unplugged the CCTV before trying to embrace her.

The survivor said the accused started behaving rudely after she objected to his advances. She also claimed the accused touched her when she was alone and gathered information about her from others.She also accused Qazi of creating a fake Instagram account combining parts of his and her names to monitor the movements of female staff and volunteers.As per the FIR, the survivor's elder sister, who joined the NGO as assistant project manager in Nov 2025, was coerced by the accused to recite prayers of a particular religion for safe travel during field visits, wear specific clothes covering full body and offer prayers, police sources said.Qazi allegedly talked about the survivor with her sister, who then quit within two months. The complainant also stated that other employees, including a 24-year-old teacher working with the NGO in 2024, quit due to Qazi's behaviour. Some cited leering or attempts to impose religious customs despite knowing they were from another religion, the complainant said.A particularly serious allegation involves a phone call on April 13 to a former employee's mother.

The complainant claimed Qazi used derogatory language, labelling the survivor, her sister, their friends and their associates "call girls" and "prostitutes," involved in "night activities", while advising the family to keep distance from them.A recording of a similar conversation was allegedly shared among colleagues on April 17. When the aggrieved group approached the NGO office on April 18, it was found closed.

They later approached police.The NGO, about 1 km from Mankapur police station, claims to be functioning since 2010 and positions itself as involved in multipurpose social work, including education-related activities, health camps and support for underprivileged children in areas like Mankapur slums. It is associated with various community events and foundations too.Police are set to examine CCTV footage, call records, social media activity, statements from other staff and family members, and the audio recordings mentioned in the complaint.Senior inspector Haresh Kalsekar of Mankapur police station said more survivors would be contacted. "On Sunday, we produced Qazi before court which granted custody remand till April 23. We will probe the case from different angles," said Kalsekar. He also said three women have come forward to lodge complaint and more are likely to submit their statements.