Delhi journalist who accused ACP of sexual harassment slapped with SC/ST Act over ‘casteist remarks’

Delhi Police have registered a case against three people, including independent journalist, who had accused Assistant Commissioner of Police Vivek Bhagat of sexual harassment while covering a protest in the Capital on October 3. The FIR, registered on the complaint of the police officer, alleges caste-based humiliation, intimidation and obstruction of official duty.

Meanwhile, no FIR has been registered so far on the journalist’s complaint alleging sexual harassment filed over 10 days ago, which was transferred to the Crime Branch for inquiry.

The FIR was registered at Parliament Street police station late on October 13, after Mr. Bhagat submitted his complaint to the Deputy Commissioner of Police, New Delhi district, the same day. It names the journalist, Gajendra Singh of News Diggy and an unidentified person as accused.

The case has been registered under Sections 221, 356(2) and 3(5) of the Bharatiya Nyaya Sanhita (BNS), and Sections 3(1)(p), 3(1)(q), 3(1)(r) and 3(1)(s) of the Scheduled Castes and Scheduled Tribes (Prevention of Atrocities) Act.

In his complaint, Mr. Bhagat, who is posted as ACP of the Connaught Place subdivision and belongs to Scheduled Caste community, alleged that the journalist made derogatory remarks about his caste and questioned his appointment as an ACP while referring to his nameplate in public.

According to the complaint, Mr. Bhagat and his operator, Constable Ravi Dahiya, allegedly heard the journalist refer to his caste identity and make remarks suggesting that people from his community were engaged in tailoring and weaving, questioning how he had become an ACP.

The officer said the alleged remarks were made at Buta Singh Roundabout on October 3, where police personnel had been deployed to manage a protest against the Election Commission of India. The demonstrators had gathered around 2:30 p.m. and were being asked to disperse in view of restrictions imposed under Section 163 of the Bharatiya Nagarik Suraksha Sanhita (BNSS), according to the complaint.

Mr. Bhagat alleged that he initially ignored the remarks and continued performing his duty. He further claimed that around 3 p.m., while he was clearing a passage for a bus carrying detained protesters, the journalist accused him of sexually assaulting her. The complaint alleges that she and her colleagues, including Mr. Singh, repeatedly confronted him, asking how he dared to touch her inappropriately, thereby obstructing his official duty.

The officer also alleged that the journalist, Mr. Singh and their colleagues staged a protest outside Parliament Street police station at around 6:15 p.m. on the same day, raising slogans against him by name and calling him a “sexual predator” and a “potential rapist”. He claimed that the protests continued overnight and that posts and videos were subsequently published on social media accusing him of sexual misconduct.

The complaint also names Cockroach Janta Party (CJP) members Abhijeet Dipke, Ashutosh Ranka and Saurav Das, along with Ratna Singh, in connection with social media posts.

Mr. Bhagat alleged that the remarks and subsequent social media posts had caused him mental trauma and damaged his reputation.

Further investigation into the case is underway.