Mahmood Farooqui rape case: Delhi police seeks maximum punishment for 'Peepli live' co-director

A still from the film 'Peepli Live' co-directed by Mahmood Farooqui

New Delhi: The Delhi police on Tuesday has sought maximum punishment of life imprisonment for Bollywood film 'Peepli Live' co-director Mahmood Farooqui in the rape case of an American lady. According to ANI, Delhi's Saket Court has reserved its order for August 4 this year on the quantum of sentence.

On Saturday, Additional Sessions Judge Sanjiv Jain convicted Farooqui for rape and fixed August 2 for hearing arguments on quantum of sentence. 

Farooqui was accused of raping a 35-year-old woman from Columbia University who was in India for research on her doctoral thesis.

The woman who moved to Delhi in June 2014 was looking for contacts for her work in Gorakhpur and through one of her common friends, she came in contact with Farooqui.

The incident dates back to March 28, 2015 when Farooqui invited her for dinner at his house. 

According to the polish chargesheet, the woman, who reached his house at 9 p.m., found Farooqui was very intoxicated, and he asked her to go in the other room which was his office.

After 20 minutes, she left the office room to smoke on the porch when he told her to come in and sit down, it said. After talking with her for a while, he suddenly kissed her and forced himself on her, the prosecution said, adding that the woman was scared after the incident.

During the trial, the American researcher stood by her complaint and alleged that Farooqui had raped her, while he denied the allegations, and claimed he was falsely implicated.

(With IANS inputs)