In her complaint, the 22-year-old stated that she first met Varun on Instagram in 2018 and that the player raped her several times while promising her marriage when she was 17.
She stated that Varun was training at the Sports Authority of India (SAI) centre in Bengaluru when she met him. Varun, who received the Arjuna Award in 2021, had recently been promoted as a DSP in the Punjab Police.
In a statement, Bengaluru Police said, “Based on the complaint received from the woman, we have registered a case on Monday against the Hockey player under appropriate section of Protection of Children from Sexual Offences Act and sections 376 (rape) and 420 (cheating and dishonestly inducing delivery of property) of the Indian Penal Code.”
Varun, who was on the Indian Olympic standby list, is presently in Bhubaneswar training with the national team to get ready for the FIH Pro League. On February 10, India takes on Spain in their first match.
Varun, a silver medallist at the 2022 Commonwealth Games, was reportedly on the run, but Hockey India denied the rumours. “He is not absconding. He is in Bhubaneswar with the team,” a Hockey India source told PTI.