While on her expedition to explore India by motorcycle with her husband, a Spanish woman was gang-raped by seven in a deserted area in Kurmahat village, Dumka district, Jharkhand. The couple was travelling to Nepal from West Bengal and they decided to have a quick stop near the village where they set up their tent to rest. The couple was assaulted, the woman gang-raped by seven and an amount of ₹10,000 was stolen too according to a report by The Hindu.
The victim took to her social media handle and shared disturbing details of the entire incident. Soon, the post went viral on the internet and sparked anger across the country. Many celebrated names from showbiz, including Richa Chadha, Dulquer Salmaan, and Chinmayi Sripada expressed their anger over the incident calling the act shameful.
Police Officials Ask Couple To Take Down Social Post
Soon after the couple posted about the horrifying act on their social media handle, it was taken down. According to a report by NDTV, the woman was asked to take down the post from her social handle by Jharkhand Police citing that it disturbed the investigation. We spoke to our legal expert Siddharth Chandrashekhar, Advocate and Legal Advisor, Bombay High Court if police officials had legal authority to compel victims to take down social media posts.
He said, "The Police do not have the right or the authority to restrain the victim from making public details of her assault should she choose to do so. However, no media publication or any other person aside from the victim has an inherent right to reveal details of the assault or the investigation. The police can advise a victim to not reveal any details to the general public till they have carried out their investigation. However, it is still ultimately the choice of the victim what information she chooses to make publicly available via (social) media.”
Don't Miss: Crime Against Women No Longer Send Shivers Down Our Spine, Are We That Desensitised?
Nowhere Safe For Female Tourists In India
Is Still safe for foreign women tourists and travellers?
— OnRoad Indian (@onroadindian) November 26, 2023
Recently my Russian Traveler friend faced serious issue in Jaipur where she was touched by a fuel station staff 3 times. Police came to help.#WomensRights#safety#touristsafety#indiapic.twitter.com/KFA8waa8gJ
A Russian woman was harassed by a petrol pump worker in Jaipur while she was exploring the pink city on bike with a Delhi-based vlogger. The worker allegedly brushed against her thrice and the disturbing video was shared by her friend on his YouTube channel questioning the safety of women in the country.
🚨SHOCKING: Another harassing story comes to light after an auto driver in Rajasthan's pink city Jaipur, was caught on camera groping a female foreign tourist.
— truth. (@thetruthin) July 4, 2023
The incident was recorded and the video is going viral across platforms in social media.
As per the video, the… pic.twitter.com/LADCFO8wOW
Last year in July, a video of a female foreign tourist being touched inappropriately by a local in Jaipur went viral on the net. The man was seen putting his hands on the woman's shoulder and grabbing her arm.
In December 2023, a Pune local was seen harassing a South Indian vlogger on camera. He was seen putting his hands around the vlogger's neck and making inappropriate gestures.
It is heartbreaking that India's rich cultural heritage, scenic landscapes, and vibrant culture coexist with concerning issues like harassment, sexual assault, and lack of legal protection to name a few.
Politicization Of Women Crimes, Once Again
The alarming incident came into the spotlight during the Jharkhand assembly's budget session and led to a lot of debates, as reported by NDTV. This is just another incident in line where political parties have engaged in blame games. For the longest time now, political parties have exploited such incidents to meet their political agendas, and criticised rival governments to highlight failures in law enforcement.
Rekha Sharma, National Women for Commission (NCW) reached out to the victim and promised support. Three out of the seven accused were sent to jail after being produced in court.
Don't Miss: Japanese Woman Harassed, Groped, Hit With Egg On Holi On Her First Solo Visit To India
It was about five years ago that the Spanish couple decided to embark on this journey to discover different parts of the world on their motorcycle. Unfortunately, seeing India's failure to provide a safe space for women almost every day with crime cases being reported now and then, safe to say our nation is soon going to witness a significant shift in the tourist demographics.
What do you think? Write to us on our social media handles. For more such stories, stay tuned to HerZindagi.
Take charge of your wellness journey—download the HerZindagi app for daily updates on fitness, beauty, and a healthy lifestyle!
Comments
All Comments (0)
Join the conversation