Days after minor's gangrape in Delhi, 2 DU students sexually harassed by 4 men in SUV

The incident comes days after a 17-year-old girl was allegedly gang-raped at gunpoint by three men inside Aastha Kunj Park in south Delhi.

Police registered an FIR on Thursday after two Delhi University (DU) students were allegedly stalked and sexually harassed by four men in an SUV near Hakikat Park in north Delhi’s Mukherjee Nagar area on Wednesday night, an officer said.

The accused verbally abused the women and made indecent remarks before fleeing the area, the officer said. (ANI/ Representational)

The accused verbally abused the women and made indecent remarks before fleeing the area, the officer said.

An FIR was registered at Mukherjee Nagar police station under sections 78 (stalking), 79 (word, gesture or act intended to insult the modesty of a woman) and 3(5) (common intention) of the Bharatiya Nyaya Sanhita (BNS).

A video clip of one of the women, narrating her ordeal, surfaced on social media. In the purported clip, the student alleged that she and her friend were returning from Vijay Nagar when an SUV arrived, its occupant rolled down the windows and made remarks, and when the women asked them to stop misbehaving and leave, the occupants hurled more abuses and indecent remarks and started following them.

“...when we tried to record a video, the car stopped, and the occupants tried to drag us inside. But when my friend took out her phone, they fled. We first went to Maurice Nagar police station, where the police personnel told us the place where the incident occurred did not come under their jurisdiction and referred us to another police station. We visited three stations…but no FIR was registered. From our sources, we identified one of the occupants. He had threatened us by claiming to be a relative of an SHO,” the woman said.

HT could not independently verify the authenticity of the purported video clip.

When reached, deputy commissioner of police (northwest) Akanksha Yadav said the Mukherjee Nagar police station received a written complaint about the alleged eve-teasing from one of the two DU students, and an inquiry was launched. “We have identified the four accused. The SUV bearing Delhi number was also traced. We have registered a case, and teams are conducting raids to arrest them. A probe is underway,” the DCP said.

Police said the alleged incident took place around 9.30 pm. “The men allegedly verbally abused the women and made indecent remarks. They even followed them and misbehaved before leaving the area,” said the officer.

The incident comes days after a 17-year-old girl was allegedly gang-raped at gunpoint by three men inside Aastha Kunj Park in south Delhi.

Following the incident, police said they have heightened security and patrolling, particularly at dark spots and vulnerable areas.

Meanwhile, the Akhil Bharatiya Vidyarthi Parishad (ABVP) Delhi unit held a symbolic protest outside the vice-chancellor’s (VC) office over recent incidents affecting women’s safety.

“It is worth noting that incidents of violence against women reported from different parts of Delhi over the past 10 days have shaken the entire city. ABVP demands that Delhi Police arrest the culprits at the earliest, try them in fast-track courts, and take the strictest possible action against them,” read a statement issued by ABVP.