No FIR yet against ACP accused of sexually harassing a female journalist

As of Monday (October 5) morning, no FIR has been registered against Assistant Commissioner of Police (ACP) Vivek Bhagat, whom an independent journalist accused of sexually harassing her while she was covering an October 3 protest in New Delhi. The protest had sought the resignation of Chief Election Commissioner (CEC) Gyanesh Kumar over alleged irregularities in the special intensive revision (SIR) of voter rolls.

Delhi Police said it has transferred the case to the Crime Branch which includes complaints from three female journalists alleging sexual harassment by police officers. But the journalist, her lawyers and political leaders who joined her say a transfer is no substitute for an FIR. 

What the journalist alleges

The complainant is an independent journalist associated with News Diggy, a digital media outlet. On October 3, she and her friend Shivani, also an independent journalist, tried to get a byte from All India Students’ Association (AISA) president Neha, who was being detained near Kerala House.

“Around 3 pm on October 3, near Kerala House, I was recording Neha when I asked why they were detaining her because there was no female police officer there. Then ACP Vivek Bhagat inappropriately touched me. I immediately asked him, ‘Why did you do this?’ Then he left, and then some female constable came to stop me,” said the complainant, speaking to Newslaundry.

Shivani, who was present, said she asked the complainant whether she was sure about her allegation. “She said she was 1,000 percent sure that this happened to her and wanted to file a complaint. Then we came to the Parliament Street police station to file a complaint at around 6 pm … They filed a complaint around 7:30 pm. They were not telling us about the medical examination. When lawyers came, they asked why they had not conducted a medical examination when my friend was saying she was in pain.”

A transfer, not an FIR 

Since filing the complaint on October 3, the complainant, her friend, journalists, and others supporting her have been stationed outside the Parliament Street police station until they were detained by the police on Monday morning.

Advocate Vartika Mani, who is representing the complainant, told Newslaundry, “The police are asking if we have any video (evidence). Delhi Police has everything at its disposal, but they still haven't been able to examine it. No FIR has been lodged. When we tried to meet (on 3rd October) the complainant, the police were not allowing us to meet her. There should also be a departmental inquiry against the police officer as per the law.”

Ratna Singh, legal affairs head of the Cockroach Janta Party (CJP), who had come in support of the complainant, said, “They just told us that they had transferred the case to the Crime Branch because of a conflict of interest. As per the law, if a woman says she has been sexually assaulted, then an FIR should be registered. … They don’t even think twice when they register FIRs against protesters, but why is this a problem in this case?”

Brinda Karat, a CPI(M) leader and former Rajya Sabha member who had earlier assisted the complainant inside the Parliament Street Police Station, said, “If a girl complains about sexual harassment, you have to file an FIR. Then they are asking for video proof. This means that if a woman is going somewhere and gets sexually harassed, she has to make a video.”

Speaking to Newslaundry, the DCP, New Delhi, told us, “We have transferred this case to the Crime Branch, and it is not under us now.” 

According to The Indian Express, officers said on Sunday that they had recorded the women’s statements and would examine CCTV footage from the protest site. The Express report also took note of another journalist who alleged sexual harassment while covering the protest at Ashoka Road. “I was recording the detention of Yogendra Yadav and Prashant Bhushan when I felt someone touching my back,” she alleged in her complaint, adding that she turned to find an officer “standing very close” to her. According to the complaint, when she confronted the officer, he allegedly dismissed her claim. 

Lawyer and human rights activist Vrinda Grover, in a post on X tagging Delhi Police and the DCP New Delhi, said “non registration of FIR of complaint of molestation by police is a cognizable offence”. She argued that police must now register two FIRs – one for molestation under Section 76 of the Bharatiya Nyaya Sanhita (BNS), and another for the non-registration of the first under Section 199 of the BNS. She said the investigation can be transferred to the Crime Branch only after both are registered.

In a statement on October 4, DIGIPUB News India Foundation said women journalists covering the Jantar Mantar protests on October 2 and 3 faced sexual violence, misconduct and inappropriate touching by senior officers and other police personnel, while women personnel dragged them, snatched their microphones and pushed them into buses. Calling this “a direct attack on democracy, press freedom, and the dignity of women”, it demanded FIRs against the accused officers, their immediate suspension and an independent investigation.

The Press Club of India said the same day that it was “shocked and dismayed” by the police’s treatment of journalists at Jantar Mantar on Friday and Saturday. It said journalists carrying press cards reported violent and aggressive behaviour, with some detained alongside protesters, and urged Delhi Police to “immediately act on the female journalist’s complaint”.

Newslaundry has reached out to the Crime Branch for an update on the complaint. This report will be updated when a response is received.

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