Guwahati: The National Human Rights Commission (NHRC) on Thursday took cognisance of a media report alleging that three women journalists were sexually harassed by Delhi Police personnel during a protest in the capital on October 3. The commission has issued a notice to the Delhi Police Commissioner, seeking a detailed report within two weeks.
According to the NHRC’s statement, a media report published on October 5 said the New Delhi District Police had received complaints about the alleged incidents and transferred them to the Delhi Police Crime Branch for an inquiry.
The complaints stem from a protest at the Parliament House Police Station on October 3, which continued into the following day. Journalists had gathered to demand an FIR against Assistant Commissioner of Police Vivek Bhagat, who was accused of assaulting one of the journalists. The protest coincided with demonstrations against the Special Intensive Revision (SIR) of voter lists and demands for the resignation of Chief Election Commissioner Gyanesh Kumar.
Delhi Police arrested 17 students and independent journalists during the sit-in. A Patiala House court granted bail to all 17 on the night of October 5 and directed the Deputy Commissioner of Police to submit a report on allegations of custodial assault. The court also ordered the preservation of CCTV footage from the Parliament Street police station, according to advocate Saimon Farooqui, who represented the arrested protesters.
The journalists continued their sit-in overnight, and Delhi Police acknowledged the women’s complaints the following morning. “New Delhi District has received their complaints and the same are transferred to Crime Branch for fair and impartial enquiry,” Delhi Police said in a post on X.
One of the complaints specifically accused Bhagat of sexually harassing and shoving a journalist while she was recording the detention of All India Students’ Association president Neha Bora.
The complainants received support from the Cockroach Janta Party (CJP) and Congress leaders, including Rahul Gandhi, Leader of Opposition in the Lok Sabha. Gandhi said registering an FIR was one of the police’s basic responsibilities and alleged that this had not been done in the case.
Congress MP Priyanka Gandhi Vadra also criticised the alleged treatment of women by the police. In a post on X, she questioned whether women journalists and students could feel secure when police personnel themselves were accused of making them feel threatened.
CJP founder Abhijit Dipke called for Bhagat’s arrest. The party also alleged that one of the three complainants was detained on October 5 along with several others. CJP legal affairs head Ratna Singh claimed on X that Delhi Police was registering an FIR against the complainant and others and was considering seizing their phones.
Separately, Delhi Police arrested journalist Nadeem Ahmed Ameen on October 6 for allegedly creating and circulating an AI-generated video depicting Bhagat sexually assaulting a woman. Police alleged that Ameen shared the video through an Instagram account linked to social media news channel News Aina Today.