Indian police accused of sexual harassment against journalists at Delhi protest
Three female journalists have accused Delhi police of sexual harassment during the dispersal of a protest. The force says the complaint is under investigation, as demonstrations against the chief election commissioner continue.
Delhi police are facing accusations of sexual harassment from three female journalists following the breakup of a street protest over the weekend, during which authorities detained dozens of young demonstrators in the Indian capital.
The allegations emerged on Saturday as police moved to disperse crowds gathered at the Jantar Mantar protest site in central Delhi. The journalists say some officers engaged in inappropriate touching during the operation.
In a social media post, Delhi Police said the complaint had been received by its New Delhi District and passed to the crime branch for a "fair and impartial" inquiry.
Protests over election rolls
On Sunday, for a third consecutive day, thousands of protesters gathered in both Delhi and Mumbai calling for the resignation of chief election commissioner Gyanesh Kumar. The demonstrations stem from sweeping changes to voter rolls, which the Election Commission says are meant to remove duplicate and ineligible entries. So far, 130 million names have been struck from the lists.
Online videos show demonstrators being physically dragged away from the protest site.
Opposition leader Rahul Gandhi said women now fear for their safety and called on the home ministry to account for what happened.
Aahna Singh, an activist and student at Jawaharlal Nehru University, told Reuters that police dragged her by the hair, describing the force's actions as "brutality".
