Woman journalist injured as snatchers target her in Delhi’s CR Park

The woman, Joymala Bagchi, 26-year-old journalist who works with a news agency, fractured her jawbone and suffered multiple injuries to her face, elbow and other areas after she fell out of the moving auto-rickshaw while trying to save the cellphone from the snatchers.

A woman was injured while she tried protect her cellphone from two snatchers in south Delhi’s Chittaranjan Park (CR Park) on Sunday evening. The two men, on a motorcycle, sped away with her cellphone in a crowded street around 6pm.

A case was registered and special teams were formed to nab the culprits involved in the incident, the officer added. (Photo: Twitter)

The woman, Joymala Bagchi, 26-year-old journalist who works with a news agency, fractured her jawbone and suffered multiple injuries to her face, elbow and other areas after she fell out of the moving auto-rickshaw while trying to save the cellphone from the snatchers. The snatchers also hurled abuse at the woman while fleeing.

The auto also toppled as she fell out of it. Bagchi receive multiple stitches on her chin and lips.

Deputy commissioner of police (south) Atul Kumar Thakur said a case of voluntarily causing hurt in committing robbery, under Section 394 of the Indian Penal Code (IPC) has been registered at the CR Park police station.

Cases of snatching in the city have become increasingly violent. Over the past week, the city has seen at least three snatching incidents wherein brute force used by motorcycle-borne snatchers left the victims, mostly women, injured. Last Tuesday, 54-year-old senior nursing officer of Lok Nayak hospital suffered injuries to her face and head after two men on a motorcycle tried to snatch her gold chain at a bus shelter near Delhi zoo. On Friday, two people suffered injuries when they fell off their scooter while being chased by two motorcycle-borne snatchers on central Delhi’s Kasturba Gandhi Marg, adjoining Connaught Place. The suspects failed to snatch the woman bag’s in the first attempt. They continued chasing the couple even after picking up the gold chain that the woman threw at them to avoid being chased and attacked.

As per data on the Delhi Police website, 4,273 cases of snatching have been reported till August, which equates to 18 cases a day. Last year, during the same period, 4,410 snatching cases had been reported.

On being asked why snatchers are becoming violent, Delhi Police commissioner Amulya Patnaik said, “When a snatching is combined with any threat, injury, use of firearm or any other weapon then we register a case of robbery. If we see the overall trend of robbery in Delhi, this crime has seen a downward over the past two years. Cases do take place from time to time and we do crack those cases. We are serious in this case as well. Special teams will work under the close supervision of the deputy commissioner of police (south).”

Originally from Kolkata, Bagchi has been living in a rented accommodation in CR Park and has been working with the news agency for three or four years.

According to a statement issued by Bagchi, she was returning home in an auto-rickshaw around 6pm after shopping in CR Park. As the auto reached the intersection of Pocket K1 and Block B, two men riding a motorcycle neared the auto.

“I was using my cellphone when the rider held my right hand and the pillion rider grabbed held my left hand. They pulled me out of the moving auto and in the process snatched my cellphone,” Bagchi said in the statement.

Bagchi fell out of the moving auto, which also toppled because of the sudden jerk. She started bleeding, after which some passersby came to her rescue. One of them informed the police control room. Bagchi was taken to a nearby hospital, from where she was referred to the AIIMS Trauma Centre.

According to Bagchi, she has learnt from the police that the place where the crime took place was not under any CCTV camera cover.

“As a journalist, I am appalled. Where are the CCTV cameras? It was daylight when I was attacked. What if a speeding car hit me? Is this how unsafe the capital is? Today morning I got to know, that there is no CCTV footage of the incident and no lead so far. Two snatchers are so well versed with the city that they know which part has no CCTV camera (sic),” Bagchi’s statement read.

“Will justice ever come to us? If the ones who have the power to highlight the incident have no safety, imagine the plight of ordinary citizens,” she added.

The snatching incident with a woman journalist also grabbed attention of the Delhi Commission for Women (DCW).

“So distressing. Female journalist pulled out of moving auto by mobile snatcher suffers multiple injury inc jaw fracture. Why no arrest by @DelhiPolice in 24 hours? DCW will record statements of girl & take action. Delhi is really unsafe! Police has a lot to answer for! (Sic),” DCW chief Swati Maliwal tweeted.