Delhi Commission for Women Saves Girl from Honour Killing Through Twitter

The Delhi Commission for Women (DCW) saved a twenty-year-old girl from an honour killing after the victim, who married without the consent of her family, asked the commission's help through Twitter.

The DCW attentive team swiftly reacted to the tweet by the girl, which she posted using her friend's mobile phone. The Commission's PRO Rahul Thiliani found her contact details. Then the victim shared that she has been hiding from her family and frightened about sharing her location. She further added that she was living on the footpath from the last two days.

Later the victim was counselled by the DCW PRO who requested her to reach the commission office in Delhi.

"The girl, Shruti (Name Changed) used her friend's phone to seek help from the Commission via Twitter. She informed that she got married to a boy on 12th August and since then her parents have been trying to kill her. She revealed that she had married the boy of her choice by Hindu rituals at a temple and that her family wasn't happy with the decision," a statement by the DCW read.

"Her family called her home to talk about it but instead when she reached home, she was beaten up and was abducted and taken to Dadri. She informed that her family was conspiring her murder. She luckily escaped and somehow managed to come back to Delhi. Her husband is still hiding somewhere and is untraceable. She kept hiding from her family and was homeless for the last 2-3 days. She then decided to ask her friend for help. She used her friend's phone and sent a message to the DCW on Twitter seeking help," the statement added.

The commission also faced the anger of the victim's family members who assembled around the office.

"The Commission had to face a lot of challenges in this case as more than 50 people from the girl's family gathered around the Commission's office. PRO Rahul Tahiliani had to immediately call the police for intervention, and after a lot of efforts by member Firdos Khan, the girl was safely shifted to a shelter home. Even the Commission's staff was threatened by the girl's family, and a complaint about the same has also been registered by the Commission," the statement read.

Following the debacle at their office, DCW ensured that the victim is provided legal assistance. The victim has now filed an application in the Delhi High Court seeking court's urgent protection.

"The girl's statements were recorded, and after that, she was safely transferred to a shelter home. Firdos Khan also ensured the strongest action against the family and got an FIR registered in the matter. The police has filed an FIR in the matter U/S 323/365/506/34 IPC. The Commission has also written to the police to ensure the safety of the victim and her husband," the statement further added.

Responding to the matter, DCW chief condemned the entire episode and said, "It is so shameful that the societal evil of honour killing still exists in our country. Very difficult to understand how parents can even think of doing this to their children. Social media has made life easier for us in many ways. Even when we look at this case, the victim didn't have a phone, nor was she able to share her location. The Commission's team handled the situation very calmly and helped rescue the girl."

"While the Commission has been helping people coming to the office, ground network and through the helpline, the Commission has also been able to set up a real-time social media tracking system where the team scans and keeps an eye on all the complaints. We're actively helping people through almost all social media channels. DCW is working hard day and night to make Delhi safer for women," she added.