The Delhi High Court has asked the Commissioner of Police to provide protection to a 45-year-old woman, a victim of February’s anti-Muslim violence, who alleged threats by violence accused as well as assault by police personnel and men in plainclothes inside the Bhajanpura police station in northeast Delhi.

The victim has filed a petition in the court through lawyer Mehmood Pracha.

The petition had prayed before the court that an order be issued to the police to provide adequate protection to her and her family from any threats posed by perpetrators of the violence and threats posed by Bhajanpura police personnel.

Pracha told the court that despite a court order dated 17.07.2020 directing the DCP concerned to look into the threat perception, the petitioner and her family were still not safe in the said locality. “They have written various emails to the DCP and lastly a complaint dated 10.08.2020 stating the staff of the SHO concerned misbehaved with them.”

On July 17, the court directed the Delhi police to provide security to the petitioner and assess threat perception after she approached the court.

Pracha submitted to the court that after the order, on the intervening night of August 5-6, “a crowd of rowdy individuals, several of whom had also participated in the riots, came to the neighbourhood of the petitioners and started raising loud communal slogans, shouting out filthy expletives… they threatened the residents and asked them to leave the neighbourhood.”

On August 8, when the petitioner and some women met the SHO, he allegedly dissuaded them from filing the complaints. “After some resilience on part of the petitioners, they were assaulted by plainclothes persons and police personnel inside the police station,” alleged Pracha.

The petitioner asked the court to direct Delhi Police Commissioner and DCP (northeast Delhi) to initiate disciplinary action against SHO Bhajanpura, and provide adequate protection to her and her family.