Shahdara Assault Case: Amid Rumours, Police Confirm Girl Hasn't Died By Suicide

Delhi police confirmed to The Quint that the survivor is currently in a shelter home with her husband.

Several posts on social media have falsely claimed that the girl, who was allegedly kidnapped, gang-raped, beaten up and then paraded on the streets in Delhi's Shahdara has died by suicide.

(Photo: Altered by The Quint)

(If you feel suicidal or know someone in distress, please reach out to them with kindness and call these numbers of local emergency services, helplines, and mental health NGOs)

Days after a 20-year-old girl was allegedly kidnapped, gang-raped, beaten up and paraded in Delhi’s Shahdara, a post is doing the rounds that the girl has died by suicide.

However, speaking to The Quint, DCP (Shahdara) R Sathiyasundaram said that the social media posts are false and the girl is safe.

In a video statement, Sathiyasundaram also clarified that some people are trying to give the incident a communal angle by sharing the name of the survivor but the information is ‘blatantly false.’

The survivor is currently in a shelter home with her husband.

CLAIM

The post shared by a Twitter profile called "The Sikh Lounge" was shared by several social media users.

The post carried a photograph from the day of the incident along with text that read, "Delhi-based victim Sikh girl commits suicide."

An archive of the post can be found here.

(Source: Twitter/Screenshot)

The same graphic shared by The Sikh Lounge was widely shared by users on Facebook, archives of some can be found here and here.

A link to the search results can be found here.

(Source: Facebook/Screenshot)

WHAT WE FOUND OUT

We contacted the Delhi Police to find out the truth in the matter. R Sathiyasundaram, Deputy Commissioner of Police, Shahdara, told The Quint that the claims were completely false.

"In the Kasturba Nagar case, people are spreading rumours about the survivor through social media, people are trying to disclose the identity of the person to give a communal angle to the story, and some are saying that the survivor died by suicide. This is wrong and blatantly false. The survivor is safe and a police officer has just met her," Sathiyasundaram told The Quint.

The police filed three FIRs – two under Section 153 (provocation with intent to cause riot), Section 153A (promoting enmity between groups), 505 a and b (public mischief) and one under Section 228A (disclosing the identity of the victim) of the Indian Penal Code (IPC), reported Hindustan Times.

WHAT HAPPENED IN SHAHDARA?

On 26 January afternoon, the woman was allegedly kidnapped, gang-raped, beaten up, and then paraded by locals in a colony in Delhi's Shahdara area after her head was shaved off, and face blackened.

The Delhi Police had filed an FIR under IPC sections for gang-rape, kidnapping, illegal confinement, intimidation, and physical assault.

The Delhi police has arrested eight women, one man and three minors have been apprehended in connection with the case.

(Update: The story has been updated to reflect that the police has filed an FIR in connection with the misinformation that was circulated on social media.)

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