Representative image showing 'stop sexual harassment' written on a board.
Credit: iStock Photo
New Delhi: A women's delegation from the AAP, led by Deputy Speaker Rakhi Birla, gathered outside Lieutenant Governor V K Saxena's residence here on Sunday, demanding action against a medical superintendent accused of sexually harassing a female doctor at a Delhi government hospital.
Despite informing the lieutenant governor's office in advance, the delegation was not granted a meeting by the LG, an official statement said.
Birla, along with AAP MLAs Dhanwati Chandela, Preeti Tomar, Vandana Kumari, Bhavana Gaur, and several AAP councillors, stood outside the LG's residence for hours, only to be met with silence, it added.
"The LG is completely anti-women. We came here with an urgent plea for justice for a female doctor who has been harassed for over a year. Instead of arresting the accused, the doctor was transferred, and her complaint has been ignored," Birla said.
Birla further pointed out that even if the LG was occupied, the staff members should have come out to address the delegation.
"We stood outside for hours, but no one from the LG's office came to meet us or provide any information on the case," she added.
The case in question involves a female doctor, who has accused a medical superintendent at a Delhi hospital of sexual harassment.
Despite her complaint being lodged a year ago, the AAP claims that no meaningful action has been taken against the accused. Instead, the doctor was transferred to another hospital which the party views as further victimisation.
Birla criticised the heavy police presence deployed outside the LG's residence, questioning whether the delegation of elected women representatives posed a threat.
"Hundreds of police officers were sent to stop us, as if we were criminals," she said.
"This is a clear indication that the LG does not respect women's voices or their rights." The delegation also took aim at Union Home Minister Amit Shah, under whose purview the LG falls.
Birla stated, "The Union Home Minister and the LG should be ashamed. It seems they are waiting for an incident like what happened in Kolkata to occur in Delhi. A woman has been harassed for a year, and instead of helping her, the authorities are protecting the perpetrator."
The party also condemned the LG's refusal to meet them and return their letter through a low-ranking officer, calling it a "disrespect" to the elected representatives.