Indian Yoga teacher in Singapore fined for molesting student

Mumbai: Kumar Amrit, a 29-year-old Indian national formerly working with a yoga institute in Singapore, was fined $4,000 by a court on Thursday after he pleaded guilty to molesting a female student last year.

Deputy Public Prosecutor Tan Jing Min told the court that in April 2022, the victim, whose details have been redacted from court documents, bought a package for one-on-one lessons at Trust Yoga in Telok Ayer Street.

Min said during the lesson, Kumar placed his hand on the victim's lower back and applied pressure without asking her permission, The Straits Times reported.

"He instructed her to lie on her stomach while he used his feet to step on her buttocks and lower back. Subsequently, he used his hands to massage her upper back, while her face was pressed to the yoga mat," Min told the court.

The court was told that Kumar gave minimal verbal cues when moving the victim from one pose to the next, and instead, he physically moved her into position without warning before telling her to perform a stretching exercise.

"The victim felt shocked," The Straits Times reported, adding that the victim asked Kumar to keep his hands off. After class, she alerted the police later that day.

Earlier this month, another yoga instructor from India, Rajpal Singh, claimed trial to eight molestation charges involving four alleged victims in Singapore. Both Kumar and Singh were employees of Trust Yoga.