Guwahati: In a shocking incident, an 80-year-old differently-abled Naga woman was allegedly “strip-searched” by Central Industrial Security Force (CISF) staff at Guwahati airport on Thursday.
The incident took place during security check-in at Lokpriya Gopinath Bordoloi International (LGBI) airport in Guwahati when the octogenarian woman and her grandchild were on their way to Delhi.
The wheel-chair-bound, Mhalo Kikon, who underwent a hip replacement surgery last year, was to travel to Delhi from Guwahati by a GoAir flight.
A CISF woman official allegedly made to take off all her clothes, including her undergarments and diaper even after Kikon repeatedly said that she had the hip implant.
Mhalo Kikon’s daughter Dolly Kikon, a renowned anthropologist from Nagaland, in a series of tweets, said that her disabled mother was made to strip by CISF at Guwahati airport.
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“It is disgusting! My 80-year-old disabled mother was forced to pull down her undergarment and get naked. Why? Why?” Kikon tweeted.
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She also alleged that the CISF security personnel harassed her niece for lodging a complaint with the authorities against the incident.
“Someone please help! The CISF security personnel team at @GuwahatiAirport are harrassing my niece who is taking care of my mother. They have taken away the complaint form she has written. They DID not allow her to take a screenshot saying it’snot “allowed”. My mom is distressed,” she said in another tweet.
Following outrage on social media, the Guwahati International Airport authorities have issued an apology to Dolly Kikon.
Despite repeated attempts, CISF officials were not available for comments.