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Mumbai girl teaches sexual harasser a lesson. Her story is empowering
Shared on the Human’s of Bombay Facebook page, the post details how she caught the perpetrator and sought immediate action against him.
“I’d just gotten off the train at Goregaon and was headed to the bridge when I felt a hand grab my butt,” recalled a girl whose story of courage has now left people inspired. What she faced, unfortunately, is an everyday practice and a sad reality for many women. However, the way she handled the situation is winning applause from people online.
Shared on the Human’s of Bombay Facebook page, the post details how she caught the perpetrator and sought immediate action against him.
As a softball player she has quick reflexes and she instantly caught the man’s hand. When she turned around to face him, she saw a huge man standing in front of her. She was intimidated by his size and he even called out for help. But no one came forward. Undeterred and determined to have him punished, she dragged him to the railway police station.
When she narrated the incident to the authorities, they told her he had been caught twice but no one lodged an FIR, so they had to let him go. “’But you don’t let him go. We are all here for you!’ His words eliminated any fear I had…” she said.
Police checked the CCTV footage and questioned him for hours, until he confessed to his crime. He has now been in jail for over two months. Since she’s a minor, he cannot get bail.
Though she was approached by the perpetrator’s daughter to forgive him, the girl refused. She wants him to get punished for what he did. Through all this, her mother has supported her and applauded her brave act.
“More often than not, women aren’t aware of their rights. But what really holds us back is fear; fear of what people will think, fear of the apparent ‘repercussions’, fear that we will be blamed and not the attacker,” she said. Then adds that it’s only “our ability to speak up and stand up for ourselves” that makes us strong. “Because we’re human beings too and it’s about time we’re given that respect,” she adds.
Since being shared a day ago, the post has gathered over 12,000 reactions from people. Several applauded the bravery of the young girl and expressed that they’re proud of her.
“This is the spirit we should adopt,” wrote a Facebook user. “I am so proud of you, you’re a braveheart,” commented another. “So many times we have just coiled ourselves and just tried to take precautions from all angles to not be touched by perverts while we should have been more like her, brave to shame the one needs to be shamed,” wrote a third.
