[Reader-list] Sexual assault of women protesters by police personnel of Parliament Street PS on June 4, 2014

[Asit Das]

Please circulate widely- our complaint against the sexual assault on women
protesting against eviction of Bhagan survivors from jantar mantar.
------


*4 June 2014*

*The Commissioner of Police*

*Delhi Police*

*Subject: Sexual assault on women protestors by personnel of Parliament
Street police station*

We are writing to demand your immediate action against police personnel of
the Parliament Street Police Station who were involved in assaulting and
brutalising a peaceful group of protestors today.

The facts are as follows.

   -

   A group of people belonging to the Dalit community from Bhagana village,
   Haryana, have been sitting in a peaceful dharna at Jantar Mantar for the
   last one month, in pursuit of their demand for justice in the case of
   abduction and gang rape of four minor girls. Early this morning, a large
   force of policemen appeared at Jantar Mantar and tried to evict the
   protestors who were sleeping there. pulled down their tent and scattered
   their belongings.
   -

   The Bhagana protestors (including the families of the rape survivors and
   the girls themselves) went to the Parliament Street Police Station this
   afternoon at about 1400 hours, in order to present a memorandum to the
   officer in charge asking to be allowed to stay in Jantar Mantar since they
   had nowhere else to go.
   -

   The Bhagana group was accompanied by representatives of women's
   organisations, Dalit organisations and students' organisations. The mothers
   of two of the rape survivors were leading the group.
   -

   The group was stopped by some policemen at the barricade outside
   the thana. Their request to be allowed to go inside and meet the office in
   charge was denied. Some policemen on duty at the barricade spoke to the
   Bhagana group in Haryanvi and asked them to go back and not to make
   trouble. The women argued with these policemen, insisting on being allowed
   to go and meet the officer in charge.
   -

   While the argument was going on, some policemen started pushing the
   group back from the barricade, using undue force and targeting the women by
   grabbing their private parts and pushing their hands into the anal region.
   The mothers of the survivors and several women activists (including Adv
   Pyoli Swatija of Samajwadi Jan Parishad, , Ms Sumedha Baudh of Rashtiya
   Dalit Mahila Andolan and Ms Rakhi – of NTUI) were attacked in this manner.
   -

   At this point a senior police officer (in uniform but without a name
   badge) came out and shouted out - “*Are ye aise nahi manenge - lathi
   ghusao.*”
   -

   At this, some 4-5 women police charged forward and attacked the women by
   thrusting at their private parts with batons. The women who were in the
   front resisted this attack and struggled with the police women. Several
   policemen were also in the melee and were physically attacking women
   protestors.
   -

   Several activists were taken into custody and held for more than an
   hour, after which they

   were released without any charge being made against them.
   -

   None of the police had name badges except one police woman (Suman D) who
   removed it after a few minutes. However, we are confident that we can
   identify most if not all the attackers by face including the officer who
   gave the order for the sexual attack.


You are surely aware that the acts committed by the policemen and women are
criminal offences under the Criminal Law (Amendment) Act, 2013.

*We demand that the concerned police personnel (including the officer who
gave the order for sexual assault) be immediately suspended from service
and charged under the relevant sections. An FIR should be filed and an
enquiry instituted without delay.*

We are shocked to see that the police personnel under your command seem to
have forgotten the bitter lessons of December 2012, and are blatantly
ignoring and violating citizens' rights of peaceful assembly and democratic
protest.


We are told that much time and resources have been invested in training the
rank and file of Delhi police in “gender-sensitive policing”. Our
suggestion to you is: please do not waste any more of the taxpayers' money
on these futile public relations exercises. Instead, please take strong,
immediate and exemplary action against personnel accused of such crimes.


We look forward to a response from you. We will be happy to come and
present you with evidence in support of our complaint.

(KALYANI MENON-SEN)

*On behalf of Women Against Sexual Violence and State Repression*