Mumbai based artist, Durga Gawde assaulted on busy Goa street, video of attack goes viral

A Mumbai-based artist, Durga Gawde has posted a video on social media purportedly showing being attacked by a man on a busy road in Goa last week.

In the clip which is accompanied by a message, the woman, who was on a visit to the tourist state, expressed unhappiness over her attacker being granted bail within four days of his arrest.

The police confirmed the incident and said the accused, Brian Franco, was arrested after she filed a complaint.

The woman, a sculptor based in Mumbai, said the incident took place on May 31 in Saligao village, in North Goa.

The video, which has gone viral, shows the woman getting into a verbal altercation with the man, who later beats her up on the busy street with several passers-by standing as mute spectators.

The artist, in her message, has narrated the incident and expressed outrage over the assault.

"He stalked me, cornered my bike and stopped his bike in front of mine such that I had to stop. He proceeded to remove my bike keys and threw them away and then started to hit my bike and intimidate me.

"I was not scared. I looked straight into his eyes without fear," the woman has said in her post on social media.

Confirming the incident, Saligao Police Inspector Santosh Desai said the accused was arrested based on the complaint filed against him.

He was booked under IPC sections 354 (outraging modesty) and 354 d (stalking), 323 (causing hurt voluntarily) and 504 (breach of peace), Desai said.

Franco was produced before a local court which released him on bail, the inspector added.