i know it's the old thing & we all know about this. but, i think this one is the complete one.
Priyanka's father accused of...
A BB reader posted this link under a comments section. But I thought it was worthy enough for a post. It comes from an article written by Preeti John for the Kolkotta daily The Pioneer. Although it's from 2001, the claims are shocking: sexual abuse, intimidation, a cover up, and all so that a certain someone's career would not get derailed...? Deplorable, if true. Have a read:
Miss World Priyanka Chopra's crown is set to lose some of it's sheen over accusations that her father, Dr Ashok Chopra, had sexually abused a minor girl when he was posted at Ferozepur, while serving in the Army.
The alleged victim, 37-year-old Dubai resident Shivani Saksena, has claimed in an affidavit that she was sexually assaulted by Dr Chopra when she was 12 years old. Shivani will file a civil suit this week in Bareilly, her lawyer Gautam Khaitan said. Dr Chopra runs a clinic at Bareilly along with his wife Madhu.
Recalling the alleged incident, Shivani said on phone from Dubai: "It happened in January 1976. My father, an officer with 10, Medical Battalion of the Army, was posted in Ferozepur and we were living in temporary accommodation there. Captain Ashok Chopra was my father's junior officer and used to live in the bachelor's quarters."
Her voice breaking with emotion, Shivani added, "One evening, when my parents had gone out and my two brothers were playing, Chopra came, closed the door and sexually assaulted me. He warned me not to talk about the incident."[OMG!!]
Shivani claims that whenever Ashok Chopra got a chance to be near her after the incident, he would smirk and threaten her with dire consequences if she talked about it. "Those were difficult days; my father was recovering from a heart attack and Ashok Chopra was a frequent visitor. I just tried to avoid him all the time."
Contacted in Bareilly, Dr Ashok Chopra said, "No comments, as yet. And, that is 'a yet'." His lawyer I Puri, admitting that Dr Chopra was posted in Ferozepur in 1976 and knew the Saksenas, however, rubbished Shivani's claim. He said, "Dr Chopra was just one year old in the Army at that time and his entire career would have been ruined if he had done anything like that."
In her affidavit, Shivani also accuses Femina editor Satya Saran of trying to hush up the matter. She states that her husband approached Ms Saran on December 2, 2000, narrated her the incident and stated that she arrange for a private apology from Dr Chopra to rest the case.
The affidavit states: 'Satya Saran sympathised with us and told my husband that she would make sure that we got justice from Ashok Chopra and she would ensure that he gave an unconditional apology to me and my family for our suffering. My husband told Satya Saran that all we needed was for Ashok Chopra to acknowledge his guilt and apologise to my family and me, as we wanted to end this matter with the minimum of fuss and keep it private.
'Satya Saran asked my husband for the number of my father in Lucknow saying she needed to obtain confirmation that he was posted in Ferozepur in 1976. To our surprise, on the following day, Satya Saran told me that since I had managed to deal with the trauma for 15 years, I should seek the help of a doctor to deal with it in future too, as she did not want to do anything to jeopardise the career of Priyanka Chopra.'
The Saksenas also claim that subsequent talks with the top brass of Bennett Coleman & Co, which holds the Miss India pageant, failed to get Dr Chopra to apologise.
Questioning the timing of the allegations, as it came right after Priyanka Chopra was crowned Miss World, Mr Puri said, 'We are in the process of finding out the motive for the allegations.' Mr Saket Bahugana, another lawyer for the Chopras, said that legal notice had been sent to a women's magazine which featured Shivani's allegations.
Asked why she took so long to bring the incident into the open, Shivani said: 'I never told my parents about the incident and had no way of knowing where Chopra was. It was only recently when my father came to Dubai and mentioned in passing that one of his junior officers' daughter was going to participate in the Miss World pageant that I came to know where he was.'
Shivani says, those 'seven-eight minutes' of abuse changed the way she looks at men. Her husband Rajiv Saksena, a chartered accountant with his own independent practice in Dubai, said, 'It has been very difficult to convince her that all men are not the same. She had told me before our marriage about the assault. I tried my best to deal with it, but there have been invisible barriers in our marriage.'
From a 'sunshine' girl, Shivani became a loner drawing into her shell, she claims, adding that she didn't tell her parents about the incident because of her father's health. 'I have spent half my life feeling guilty for the incident, while the perpetrator has been scotfree, enjoying life. My childhood, marriage and every venture has been haunted by this incident,' she says.
About the civil suit being planned, Rajiv Saksena said, 'We have inserted a clause that whatever compensation we get would be given to a charity for abused children and a similar amount would be donated by us.'
Shivani today has all the comforts of life, including a house in a posh area of Dubai and expensive cars, but she says she is yet to put the ghosts of her past to sleep. Being the director of Mercon Trading LLC, she has a thriving career.
But she is paranoid about her children. 'I cannot leave my children a nine-year-old daughter and 12-year-old son alone for long. I keep wandering if anyone will harm them.' After embarking on the search for 'justice', the Saksena couple has slowly broken the story to its children.
'Because of one incident, my whole family suffered since they were at the receiving end of my depression and temper tantrums,' she said bitterly, 'I have nothing to gain materially from this suit. I am in my late thirties, well settled and not after money. So many women take it to their graves, fearing stigma. I want to lead a normal life again.'
Asked about why she has chosen now to break her silence now, she said 'I cannot think of a better time, I want the whole country and Bareilly to know.'
That, she says, would be her revenge.
Article:
Priyanka's father accused of molestation?
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