Operation Punha Dhairya: In 3 months, MBVV police call 300 victims of harassment, and crimes to resolve issues

Police in Mumbai have contacted 300 women who reported cases of domestic violence, molestation, harassment and other crimes over the past three years to check on the status of their problems. As part of 'Operation Punha Dhairya', the police will now take action against perpetrators. The initiative was launched in February and covers the suburbs of Mira-Bhayandar, Vasai and Virar, including Naigaon and Nalasopara. Victims of abuse will be given a voice and be able to seek justice in reality and not just on paper.

Mumbai: In the past three months, 300 women, victims of domestic violence, molestation, harassment and other crimes, were called by the Mira Bhayandar-Vasai Virar (MBVV) police to check on the status of their problem. Only four women have said that their problems have reoccurred. The police will now take necessary action against the perpetrators.

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The phone calls were made as part of the ‘Operation Punha Dhairya’, launched in February this year in MBVV, a commissionerate that covers the suburbs of Mira-Bhayandar, Vasai and Virar, including Naigaon and Nalasopara.

As part of this project, all complaints — including those made verbally — of abuse, assault or stalking, by women in the last three years are being revisited.

The decision was taken by MBVV commissioner Madhukar Pandey in light of the gruesome murder of Shraddha Walkar on May 18, 2022, who had complained about her live-in partner Aaftab Poonawala to the Thane police months before she was killed by him.

In her complaint, Walkar said that Poonawala tried to kill her and she feared he would cut her into pieces and throw her away. However, she had taken the application back due to which the police claimed they could not investigate the matter and had to respect the wishes of the complainant. According to Walkar’s father, had the police followed the case, his daughter would have been alive.

Taking all complaints seriously

Recently, a 24-year-old woman from Mira Road had written an application to the police about a stalker who had threatened her when she had confronted him on August 23, 2022. The police had registered a case of molestation and threatening under sections 354, 323 and 596 of the Indian Penal Code (IPC) and arrested the accused. In April 2023, the officers from the Mira-Bhayander commiserate called up the woman and found that the stalker was on bail and was still harassing her.

This time the accused was presented before the assistant commissioner of police along with two witnesses and asked to sign a bond under section 107 of the Criminal Procedure Code (CrPC) giving an undertaking that he would not go near the woman or harm her.

Breaking the vicious cycle of abuse

According to API Tejashri Shinde, several women have said that even after serving a sentence, their husbands have returned, and continued the abuse. Complainants in each of these cases over the past three years are called individually by the officials and asked if their complaint was resolved satisfactorily or if it persisted.

“In several cases of marital disputes or abuse or even stalking, the police arrest or counsel the accused and the complainant and consider the problem solved. But in reality, even after police intervention, the problem persists,” said MBVV commissioner Madhukar Pandey.

He added that Operation Punha Dhairya meant that victims who get ignored or suffer the same crime and are unable to report it, will get a voice and they would be able to get justice in reality and not just on paper.

Shinde said that in 2022 they had received 757 applications from women about family issues (under section 498 of the IPC) and others like harassment by a stranger or stalker.

Out of these 420 applications were dismissed as both the victim and the accused were counselled, thus resolving the issue. However, 337 turned into FIRs. Till April, 396 applications were received from women out of which 298 were resolved through counselling.

Counselling to curb domestic violence

Dr Pranav Kabra, St Mary Advance Care Hospital at Vasai West said “Work, peer competition and travel stress for people in the far suburbs has increased which is leading to a rise in domestic violence over the smallest of issues,” said Kabra.

“In such cases, generally counselling is enough as both the parties are invested in the relationship and many times a misunderstanding is the cause of a dispute but in cases like molestation and assault, we make sure that an FIR is registered,” said Shinde.

However, she added that after the FIR and arrest, the accused comes out on bail and starts harassing the victim again but sadly that would not be followed up until now.

Shinde said that they would call all the applicants in the past three years and check on them. If the problem has reoccurred, the accused would be asked to give an undertaking under section 107 of the CrPC, violation of the undertaking would invite necessary penal action and booking.