Bhojpuri actor Manoj Pandey booked for rape

The woman, who said she was in a live-in relationship with Pandey (27), alleged that he had forced her to undergo an abortion in 2015 when she was two months pregnant, the police said.

Image: Screen grab from one of the films of Manoj Pandey

Mumbai: Bhojpuri film actor Manoj Pandey has been arrested from Kalyan in Thane district for allegedly raping a 27-year-old singer-actress on the pretext of marrying her, a senior official said on Friday. The woman, who said she was in a live-in relationship with Pandey (27), alleged that he had forced her to undergo an abortion in 2015 when she was two months pregnant, the police said.

According to the woman's complaint, she met Pandey at a party in 2012 where he promised her a role in a movie starring him, they said.

She stated that they moved into a rented apartment in suburban Kandivali and she was bearing the accommodation expenses, the police said. A few days back, the woman approached the Charkop police station and complained that Pandey had raped her on the pretext of marriage, the official said. On the basis of a woman's complaint, the accused was arrested last night from Kalyan in adjoining Thane district, where he was shooting for a film, the official said. Pandey has been booked for rape, exposure and abandonment of child under 12 years and criminal breach of trust, among other charges, the police said, adding further investigation into the matter is underway.