British Tourist Jumps Hotel Balcony in India to Escape Harassment, Injures Leg

A British tourist travelling in the northern part of India was injured when she jumped from the balcony of the hotel she was staying in an attempt to escape alleged harassment.

The 30-year-old woman was staying in a hotel in Agra, India, and had asked for a wake-up call at 4:00 am. According to the women, instead of the expected intercom rings, the hotel owner himself turned up at her door in the morning and insisted on giving her a massage.

The woman who had checked in two days ago, told police that the man would not leave and so she had to lock the door and jump from the balcony in a desperate attempt to flee the hotel. It is when the woman jumped from the balcony to the floor below, that she injured her leg. The hotel owner has been arrested by the police.

A spokesman for the British High Commission in India said UK consular officials in Delhi have spoken to the woman and to the local police, reports BBC.

Following the incidence, the UK Foreign and Commonwealth Office (FCO) has reviewed its travel advisory for women travelers in India, asking them to be more cautious.

"Women travelers should exercise caution when travelling in India even if they are travelling in a group," it said, according to Indian Express.

"We are aware of an incident involving a British national in Agra, India, and are urgently looking into it. We are in contact with local authorities and are providing consular assistance to the woman," an FCO spokesperson said.

The senior superintendent of police in Agra told BBC that woman had suffered a leg ligament injury and that she has been treated. Also, the woman's stay has been arranged in a different hotel and she has two constables along with her for security.

According to police officials, the hotel owner claims that only after the woman did not respond to the repeated rings by the hotel staff to wake her up, did he go up to the room himself.

The incidence follows the recent gang rape of a Swiss tourist who was travelling along with her husband in a village in Datia district of Madhya Pradesh, central India. Six out of the eight men who allegedly raped the woman have been arrested by the police.