Junoon Indian Restaurant Armadale boss Rajen Bhatia pleads guilty to sexual assault

The restaurant owner who begged his victim “not to spoil it” after he sexually assaulted her.

Junoon Indian Restaurant owner Rajen Bhatia was charged with sexual assault. Picture: Facebook

An Armadale Indian restaurateur offered to buy a restaurant for a waitress to run on her own after he sexually assaulted her.

Rajen Bhatia, 51, fronted the Melbourne Magistrates’ Court on Monday after pleading guilty to intentionally sexually touching without consent charges.

Bhatia, of Rowville, sexually assaulted the 22-year-old victim at his High St eatery Junoon Indian Restaurant in early 2020.

Bhatia approached the young woman and grabbed his victim’s hand and “gently” stroked it, the court was told.

The fiend then pulled the victim close and rubbed his head up against her neck.

The victim attempted to pull away but Bhatia, in Hindi, said “come here”.

Bhatia touched his victim, kissed her neck and bit her shoulder.

The victim, who attempted to move away, repeatedly said “no” to the unwanted conduct but Bhatia carried on unabated.

“Why didn’t you come to this planet 20 years before,” Bhatia said.

The court heard Bhatia then placed his teeth on the victim’s shoulder and “bit down”.

The victim recalled she was “frozen in fear”.

“Come here I won’t do anything to you,” Bhatia said.

Bhatia “stopped what he was doing” and dropped the victim’s hand after an employee called out from the kitchen.

Bhatia grabbed the victim’s hand again and apologised, the court heard.

The victim told her housemate Bhatia had “forced himself upon her”.

The housemate recalled the victim appeared “shaken and upset” while disclosing the sexual assault.

The victim later recorded a phone conversation between she and the boss.

Bhatia said it was “100 per cent my fault”.

“For me you were a special person and I am ashamed of what I did,’’ he said.

“I want to buy a restaurant and I want you to manage it yourself … you won’t even see me …

“I am feeling very very unwell … what a bloody nightmare I am finding myself in … I’m begging you … I am really sorry for that but please don’t spoil it for yourself …

“I am feeling so yuck inside, I know you would be going through the same.”

Police later raided Junoon and arrested Bhatia.

Bhatia denied sexually assaulting the victim.

He also claimed he put his arm around the victim to show her to upload food photos to a Facebook page but denied kissing her.

Bhatia also admitted he “sometimes joked” with the victim about how he would marry or date her if she was younger.

The victim, in a statement read to the court, said Bhatia left her “numb, scared and traumatised”.

“I didn't see that coming …,” the victim said.

“He … made me feel helpless, I had a million scary thoughts in my brain … about losing myself, being alone, being assaulted made me feel pathetic …

“This incident made me feel most depressed and the most anxious version of myself …

“It has been the most dreadful and depressed time of my life.”

Mostafa Rahmani, for Bhatia, said his client endured a “lot of shame” in the community for a “man of his standing”.

Mr Rahmani also said Bhatia implemented “measures” at his restaurant.

“He’s rectified his behaviour as much as possible,” Mr Rahmani said.

The court heard Bhatia planned to sell Junoon and retire despite the business “thriving”.

Magistrate Ros Porter indicated she would place Bhatia on a diversion plan with conditions to be determined on May 10.