Delhi Police transfers sexual harassment complaints by women journalists to Crime Branch
The Delhi Police has transferred to the Crime Branch complaints by three women journalists who alleged sexual harassment by police personnel while covering a protest against Chief Election Commissioner Gyanesh Kumar at Jantar Mantar, officials said on Sunday.
The complaints relate to alleged incidents during the October 3 protest, when police personnel were deployed to maintain law and order. The Crime Branch will conduct a "fair and impartial" enquiry and record statements of the complainants and other persons concerned, a police officer said.
One of the journalists had told PTI on Saturday that an assistant commissioner of police had sexually assaulted her during the protest.
She alleged that police personnel were detaining protesters and that no women police personnel were present at the spot. According to her complaint, she questioned ACP Vivek Bhagat about the absence of women personnel, following which he allegedly sexually assaulted her and pushed her back.
Bhagat could not be contacted despite repeated calls and messages. A source said his name was mentioned in the complaint submitted by the journalists.
The journalist also alleged that she and others later approached a police station to lodge an FIR but no action was taken at the time.
The Press Council of India expressed "shock and dismay" over the alleged treatment of journalists covering the protest and urged the Delhi Police to act on the complaint immediately.
"Behaviour of this kind cannot be normalised in a democracy," the Press Council said, stressing that journalists should be able to work freely and document protests without fear.
It also called on the Delhi Police to ensure that media persons have sufficient space to perform their duties without facing aggression or threats.
The allegations also triggered a political response, with Congress leader Priyanka Gandhi Vadra questioning Prime Minister Narendra Modi and Union Home Minister Amit Shah over the alleged harassment.
In a post on X, Priyanka Gandhi said the women journalists had alleged sexual harassment and rude behaviour by police personnel while reporting from the protest.
She claimed that despite protests by several journalists, no FIR had initially been registered and asked the prime minister and home minister whether such treatment of women was appropriate.
"Narendra Modi ji, Amit Shah ji, is this treatment of women appropriate? If not, why do you not take cognizance of this?" she said.
Priyanka Gandhi said women were being made to feel threatened by the very police force responsible for providing security, adding that women across different sections of society were facing concerns over safety.
The protest at Jantar Mantar was against the CEC and involved journalists and others. The police action and the allegations of sexual harassment have since prompted the Crime Branch enquiry, which will now examine the complaints and record statements as part of the investigation.
