145;Molestations nothing new146;

Earlier, on Wednesday morning, Mumbai Police Commissioner D N Jadhav had this to say: 8220;The media is blowing this incident out of proportion. Several incidents of molestation take place in the city each year.8221; He was referring to the outrage across the city following photographs of the incident published in The Hindustan Times. As they left the hotel and walked on to a road packed with thousands of revelers, a mob of men pounced on the couples and molested the two women for close to 10 minutes, till a traffic police vehicle passing by was alerted.

8220;Have you left your mothers and sisters at home today?8221; Jadhav asked reporters, when questioned about whether Mumbai remains a safe city for women.

Later, Joint Commissioner of Police Law and Order K L Prasad said: 8220;It is true that my commissioner said the media is blowing the issue out of proportion, but he did not mean that he was not concerned. Even he has a wife and a daughter.8221; As many as 115 cases of molestation were registered in 2007 and 2006 each, he pointed out, while 119 cases were registered in 2005.

Prasad also defended the officers present at the spot and at Juhu police station. Asked why the culprits were not nabbed at that instant, Prasad said: 8220;My men did an excellent job. The first priority was to rescue the couples. We will definitely nab the culprits. The face of one of the culprits is very clear in the photographs taken, and that is an important lead.8221;