Updated: October 6, 2020 2:53:29 pm
The NCW has also directed them to immediately remove the posts and refrain from sharing such information in the future.
The National Women’s Commission has served notices to BJP’s TI cell chief Amit Malviya, Congressional leader Digvijaya Singh and actress Swara Bhasker for allegedly revealing the identity of Hathras’s victim on Twitter and asked them for an explanation. The NCW has also directed them to immediately remove the posts and refrain from sharing such information in the future.
Under the provisions of the Indian Penal Code, anyone who reveals the identity of a person who is or is suspected of being a victim of sexual assault can be imprisoned for up to two years.
The 19-year-old allegedly raped in UP’s Hathras village by four men on September 14. After her condition deteriorated, she was referred to Safdarjung Hospital in Delhi where she succumbed to her injuries. She was cremated in the early hours, and her family alleged that local police they forcibly cremated her In the darkness of the night.
BJP leader Amit Malviya tweeted the 48-second video on Friday, writing: “Hathras victim’s interaction with a reporter outside AMU, where he claimed there was an attempt to strangle his neck. None of that takes away the atrocity of the crime, but it is unfair to color it and degrade the gravity of one heinous crime against another… ”In the video, the woman can be seen lying on the ground, her face clearly visible.
@NCWIndia has delivered notices to @amitmalviya @ digvijaya_28 Y @ReallySwara looking for an explanation about his #Twitter publications that reveal the identity of the #Hathras vicitm along with an address to remove these posts immediately and refrain from sharing such posts in the future @sharmarekha
– NCW (@NCWIndia) October 6, 2020
In separate notices to Bhasker, Malviya and Singh, the NCW said it has come across several Twitter posts that used the photo of the victim of the alleged gang rape incident. “In view of the foregoing, you are hereby required to provide a satisfactory explanation to the Commission upon receipt of this notice and you must remove and refrain from the transmission of such images / videos on social media, as they are widely disseminated by your follower , which is prohibited by existing law, ”the NCW said in the notice.
Earlier, NCW President Rekha Sharma he told The Indian Express that sharing the identity of a rape victim is “illegal” and that the commission would investigate the matter. “If she is a rape victim, then the incident of tweeting the video is really very unfortunate and it is also absolutely illegal,” he told The Sunday Express.
Tight security in victim’s village of Hathras, Monday. (Express photo: Praveen Khanna)
The NCW president said: “The courts have said time and again that the identity of a rape victim cannot be revealed in any way. When we send statements, we are also very careful never to reveal the identity of a rape victim. The UP Police had issued a statement saying that she was not a victim of rape. However, there seems to be some confusion. I will speak to Amit Malviya and the UP Police personally about the matter. If it turns out that she was a rape victim, then NCW will take the issue to its logical end. “
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