Prithvi Shaw responds to influencer’s molestation charges, calls it 'womanhood card' tactic

Indian cricketer Prithvi Shaw on Tuesday described social media influencer Sapna Gill’s allegations against him in an alleged molestation case as baseless, claiming they were made to damage his reputation and attract publicity.

In a written submission filed before a local court, Shaw argued that Gill was invoking the “womanhood card” to pursue a “personal vendetta” stemming from a 2023 case in which she was booked following a pub brawl.

Gill was arrested in February 2023 after an alleged altercation with Shaw, reportedly triggered by a dispute over taking selfies at a suburban hotel.

Following her release on bail, she later lodged a complaint at the Airport police station in Andheri, accusing Shaw, his associate Ashish Yadav and others of molestation and outraging modesty. However, the police did not register a First Information Report (FIR) in the matter.

Subsequently, Gill moved a magistrate’s court seeking directions to compel the police to register an FIR. In response, the police informed the court that their inquiry did not reveal any offence against Shaw or the other accused.

The magistrate thereafter ordered a fresh police inquiry under Section 202 of the Code of Criminal Procedure, a provision used to assess whether sufficient grounds exist to proceed with a case.

Dissatisfied with this directive, Gill filed a revision petition before a sessions court in April 2024 through her counsel, advocate Ali Kaashif Khan.

Shaw, after failing to respond on multiple occasions, finally filed his reply on Tuesday, stating that Gill was "playing the womanhood card with sole intention to settle the personal vendetta as counterblast" to the FIR against her.

"The present criminal revision application is false, frivolous, vexatious and filed with the sole intention to malign, defame and harass the respondent by misusing his public image and celebrity status," Shaw's reply said.

Gill is a struggling actor", and had moved the court "with sole intention to gain publicity" and "extort handsomely" from the cricketer by implicating him in a false complaint, it alleged.

The matter will be next heard on March 31.