India: Women Commission chief Swati Maliwal also ‘teased’

The 2012 gang-rape case, several incidents of molestation and rape are evidence of how unsafe India’s central capital is for women. Every day newspapers are filled with incidents of molestation across the country and Delhi is notorious for such incidents that happen from time to time.

Delhi Commission for Women (DCW) chairperson Swati Maliwal’s observation was no different. Despite being the chairperson of the Delhi Commission for Women, she was allegedly molested on the road outside the All India Institute of Medical Sciences (AIIMS) yesterday.

The horrifying incident does not end here, his hand got stuck in the car window of a drunk driver, after which he was brutally dragged for 10-20 meters on the road.

In a recent tweet, Swati alleged that the person who abused her has also targeted other women. A girl called helpline 181 and told how on January 17, the man stopped the car in front of her several times on Lodhi Road and asked her to sit in the car. ‘It’s good I caught him. The greatest appeal is not to be afraid, to raise your voice.’

This incident has further shaken the confidence of women across the country. When even the most empowered women like her are not safe in the city, it’s no wonder other women don’t feel safe. However, Swati Maliwal has dared to speak openly about the incident.

Who is Swati Maliwal?

Swati Maliwal is an engineering graduate. He worked with HCL but his urge to move forward took him on different paths. When all young people in their early twenties want to get a good job, a big position and a rich future, Swati quit her job at the age of 22.

After quitting her job, she started volunteering in the country’s slums and rural areas. She then became one of the youngest members of the Anna Hazare-led anti-corruption movement in 2011.

For a brief period she also became part of Greenpeace India as a campaigner. There he worked to provide safe food for children and women in 2013. He then worked with a Member of Parliament in Delhi as a Development Consultant in 2014.

Swati Maliwal has also been part of a wide range of NGOs that work for centralization of power within the country. He also contributed in organizing the campaign to educate the public about the RTI Act.

Delhi Commission for Women

It was in the year 2015 that she became the Chairperson of the Delhi Commission for Women. However, the path was not smooth as he faced serious allegations from the former head of the commission, Barkha Shukla.

The journey so far

Swati Maliwal talks about her journey so far, especially after becoming the chairperson of DCW, that she faced many problems.

‘In those early days I was not allowed to enter my office. The biggest problem in DCW was the complete lack of resources. The former DCW chief, who is the complainant in the ACB case, handled one case in eight years and we have processed one lakh cases so far. There is not a single charge of bribery in these one lakh cases.

As the DCW chief, Maliwal gained considerable popularity. 66 colleagues in his team helped the affected women to register a police case. The commission’s ‘181’ women’s helpline receives about three thousand calls every day. This strategy helped the commission gain media attention for rape cases. Most of these rape cases involved elderly and minor women.

Maliwal did not stop there. He set up a team that looked for criminal cases against children and women through social media. In one of the major cases, photos of Muslim women were uploaded to an app for the purpose of online auction. As a result, the team sent several notices to the police.

The team also demanded action against those who posted offensive comments about the daughter of famous Indian cricketer Virat Kohli.

The team also didn’t miss an opportunity to file an FIR against Mukesh Khanna (Shaktiman actor) for his lewd comments.

Maliwal also started rescue operations. They also took strict action against health or spa centers that were allegedly involved in the prostitution business. He is also known for conducting raids against members of the liquor mafia.

Many questions were raised on the methodology of his raids, but he handled them in a nonchalant manner, saying, ‘We are hurting businesses and all the corrupt officials who are part of these rackets. I have opened a Pandora’s box.’

Ambitions

Swati Maliwal has always said that she has no political ambitions. She only wants to work for significant changes in the Delhi Commission for Women.

Delhi incident

Delhi was not kind to the women commission chairperson either. Swati Maliwal expressed this issue in her tweet. Maliwal said on Twitter, ‘If the chairperson of the women’s commission in Delhi is not safe, then you [خواتین کی حفاظت کی] can assess the situation.’

They were allegedly molested on the streets of Delhi. Reportedly, they were also dragged for 10-20 meters by a car driver who was drunk. Moreover, according to his claim, his hand got stuck in the car window near the medical institute.

Harsh Chandra, the car driver accused of molestation and voluntarily causing hurt, is a 47-year-old resident of Sangam Vihar. Police say the man is being questioned.

The DCW chief told the police that a drunk man approached him twice and asked him to sit in his car. When she approached to reprimand him, he tried to close the window glass, trapping her hand in the window. Deputy Commissioner of Police (South) Chandan Chaudhary said, “They were dragged for 10-15 metres.”

Police said they received a call about the incident from a patrol van in front of Ames Gate at 3.11am on Thursday and stopped the car at 3.34am. Driver Harish Chandra resident of Sangam Vihar has been arrested. He was found intoxicated and sent to judicial custody for 14 days. The police have registered a case against the accused under Sections 323, 341, 354, 509 of the IPC and Section 185 of the Motor Vehicle Act.

The incident took place when a 20-year-old woman’s scooter was hit by a car and dragged for about four kilometers in Sultanpuri area of ​​Outer Delhi on January 1, 2023.

A report released by the National Crime Records Bureau (NRCB) in August 2022 named Delhi as the most unsafe metro city for women.

Delhi topped the list of crimes against women among all metropolitan cities for the third consecutive year.