Two female students of University of Delhi (DU) were harassed and called ‘Coronavirus’ by a group of six men who tossed water balloons at them. The students reported that the local police weren’t sensitive enough in dealing with the same.
A fortnight after students from Kirori Mal College faced racial slurs their college mates, two female students were called ‘Coronavirus’ by a group of six men on Tuesday, 3rd March. The men, who were on motorbikes, tossed water balloons at them with a clear intention of sexually harassing the women. The women were accompanied by a male friend as well, who, wasn’t aimed by the men. As one of the students removed her mask, the men screamed, “Aye, Coronavirus!”.
Upon calling the NorthEast helpline, the authorities told them that a PCR van would be sent to their location. However, things didn’t go well for the women. The police officers sent for help didn’t realise the seriousness of the matter, and told them that they should have called the Roop Nagar police station instead. They dismissed the matter as being a ‘Regular Holi incident’, and advised the students to carry sticks with them for self-defence.
The police officers displayed inefficacy initially, as they kept asking the victims about the location of the incident, while they had already mentioned it. They then promised to take their application to the SHO, which didn’t happen. The victims, at the end, visited the police station, only to find out that their complaint had not been submitted. As they wrote a fresh complaint and filed an FIR, the police talked to them about the issue. The officers tried to normalisze the issue, while the victims kept insisting the usage of the word ‘Coronavirus’.
As reported by Newslaundry, A senior inspector of Roop Nagar police station has been assigned to the case.
Tashi Dorjay Sherpa, a Northeast student, Hindu College said, “Whether it be against Mainland Chinese in Hong Kong or North-Easterners in India, the Coronavirus outbreak has been used as a new means to spread racist remarks and notions.”
Kuber Bathla
