A video purportedly of some northeast women harassed in Hauz Khas village, a posh Delhi locale, by a few men who asked to know their "rate" is doing rounds on social media.
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Deputy Commissioner of Police IP Singh in his recent statement said that an FIR has been registered in the case and the officials are trying to identify the culprits.
Shared by a thrift store account by the name Huckleberry Hangers, the incidents in the ten-minute-long video are claimed to be dated from July 18, occurring around 10 PM near the fort in Hauz Khas village. Alleging sexual harassment and racial discrimination, the description alongside the video recounts how four women were approached by a group of men who asked for their '"Rate" (my hourly charge as a sex worker).'
An FIR has been registered in Delhi's Safdarjung Enclave in connection with an incident wherein 3-4 people passed lewd comments on 3 women from Darjeeling in the intervening night of July 18 & July 19. Efforts are being made to identify the culprits: DCP South West IP Singh
The video shows the women angrily questioning a few men over them asking for "rates", while the men appear to make gestures of apology, say sorry and then walk away.
The Instagram account says the alleged harassment happened "just because we look different."
The Delhi Commission for Women (DCW) took cognisance of the case and on Wednesday issued a notice to the police pursuing an FIR. "It has been reported that no FIR has been registered in the matter so far. This is a very serious matter and needs to be dealt with very strictly," the
— Delhi Commission for Women - DCW (@DCWDelhi) July 21, 2021 undersigned by chief Swati Maliwal, reads.
The commission has sought information by July 25 in the case.
सोशल मीडिया पर वायरल वीडियो में देखा गया - दिल्ली के हौज खास इलाके में कुछ नॉर्थ ईस्टर्न लड़कियों के साथ हुई छेड़छाड़. लड़कों के ग्रुप ने लड़कियों से पूछा उनका "रेट"
— Delhi Commission for Women - DCW (@DCWDelhi) July 21, 2021
Video Of Row Viral As Northeast Women Harassed In Hauz Khas
Further on in their video, two women - identifying themselves as Astha and Neha - recount the incidents from the weekend that made them "question a lot of things" and that they were "disgusted."
They alleged the police they approached following the said harassment were also "smiling" while they narrated the incident. One of the women further shares how when they tried to enter a restaurant to eat, a policeman asked if she was a "dancer."
"We cannot trust people or anybody on the streets... If the stakeholders - the police - are smiling and smirking, what are we supposed to do? What are women supposed to do?" they ask.
A study by Jamia Millia Islamia in 2014 had found that 81 percent women from northeast India felt unsafe in Delhi owing to the daily discrimination they faced. From accommodation to travel and hesitation to approach police, northeast women had claimed they were disadvantaged in the city on many fronts.
During the pandemic, several such cases of racism against women from the northeast are being reported. Last year in March in North Delhi, a man allegedly spat on a Manipuri woman and called her "corona." Delhi Police had arrested the man the same month.
Another racist attack on NE girl reported just now in North Campus calling her Coronavirus and spitting on her. Are the concerned authorities waiting for untoward situation to happen again? Incident like Nido Tania should not happen again to any of our NE boys and girls. pic.twitter.com/rrNdzU3CIf
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