Harassment, domestic violence cases surged in lockdown: Police data

Women helpline registers spike all through the course of lockdowns in the first wave last year and the second spell this year

Harassment, cyberstalking and domestic violencerelated distress calls rose sharply in Rajasthan during lockdown months, according to the police department data.

Police officials said that the number of distress calls received on its centralised 1090 women helpline number registered an exponential spike all through the course of lockdowns in the first wave last year and the second spell this year.

The control rooms received about 300 calls on an average every month till March last year. However, the number of calls logged a massive spike after April and continued to surge ahead in May. There were 2,049 cases in May, which increased to 14,344 in June and further to 15,893 in August, the highest in a month in the year.

However, after lockdowns

were completely eased, cases saw a decline from October 1,122 cases which came to 747 in December.

“There were two broad reasons for distress calls; the first was related to harassment over phone calls, messages, and cyber-stalking. The second category included cases of domestic violence by husbands and in-laws,” said Amrita Duhan, deputy commissioner of police (DCP), headquarters.

All women distress calls in Rajasthan land at the Jaipur police’s state-of-the-art Abhay command and control centre, which then transfers complaints

to the concerned control room of the particular district.

DCP Duhan said that an analysis of phone calls was warranted to look into the reasons behind the increasing number of distress calls that kept pouring in on the dedicated helpline.

“Many women complained of receiving calls and messages from unknown phone numbers. Some were also stalked and harassed on cyberspace at different social media platforms,” Duhan said.

The police research indicated a situation of women living in marginal families was particularly perilous. JAIPUR: