Ramjas College protests: DCW issues notice to Delhi Police for 'manhandling' women protestors
Policemen attacking female protestors in Delhi University may amount to molestation, said commission chairperson Swati Maliwal.
The Delhi Commission for Women on Saturday ordered an investigation against the police in connection with the Ramjas College protests, reported ANI. In a notice, the commission has asked the police to submit details regarding the “manhandling” of women protestors.
The commission has also sought information on the number of male and female officers deployed at the clash site on Wednesday. “Policemen attacking female protestors in DU [Delhi University] may amount to molestation; severe punishment needed,” DCW chairperson Swati Maliwal told ANI.
Maliwal said she was shocked to find out how the police handled the women. Comparing the incident with her personal experiences, the DCW chairperson alleged that the police have now become violators themselves. “Was part of several protests. Been lathi-charged but never touched by police. Cops turning into goons now. Molesting protesters openly (sic),” Maliwal said, according to The Indian Express.
The Delhi Police, on its part, on Thursday had suspended three of its senior personnel for “high-handedness with media persons and students”. The case has now been transferred to the Crime Branch.
The fiasco began on Tuesday when a seminar had to be cancelled after members of Akhil Bharatiya Vidyarthi Parishad protested against the participation of Jawaharlal Nehru Unoversity students Umar Khalid and Shehla Rashid Shora. The talk was part of Ramjas College’s Literary Society and English department’s two-day seminar on “Cultures of Protest”. Stones were pelted at the conference room windows when organisers had tried to hold the seminar, though Khalid was not present.
On Wednesday, clashes broke out between members of the All India Students Association and ABVP at Ramjas College when the students took out a rally to protest against the cancellation of the seminar. More than 20 students and several journalists were injured.On Thursday, the Delhi Police had registered an FIR against unknown persons.