I just smiled...

Hi, Mandir Nagar Station House Officer is found to be involved in rape. There is allegation of sexual assault and I am checking.

This message popped up my chat box when I was busy writing a gang rape story of 13-year-old girl in east Delhi’s Nand Nagri on Thursday. Within two minutes, a similar note again erupted. 

It was around 7: 45 pm and deadline to submit was very near as I had listed two stories for the day.  I decided to complete the gang rape story and thereafter will confirm about the rape allegations against SHO.

My phone ranged after I wrote a paragraph and I could not ignore it as with was another reporter from different organization was calling up. The caller asked, “Do you any idea of Station House Officer of Mandir Marg has been accused to sexual assault?”  I replied, ‘Yes and will try to get details after 15 minutes.’  After saying ok, the caller disconnected the phone.  

I started writing the gang rape story….

A 13-year-old girl alleged that she was gang raped by three youths in north east Delhi on Thursday night. After registering the complaint of the rape, police arrested all three accused who were identified as local auto-rickshaw drivers, said police.

Police said that on January 7, the victim girl, who hails from Harsh Vihar area of north East Delhi had gone missing from her residence. Her parents lodged missing complaint with police after failed to trace her from all possible places.

According to the complaint of the girl, she left home and was loitering around Guru Teg Bahadur Hospital at night. There three youths befriended her and took her to a room.

From the description of the complainant, police have reasons to suspect that the girl was taken to an abandoned room inside the hospital premises. The girl alleged that three youths raped her in the room.

On Thursday the girl herself returned and complained that she was raped by three. She was taken to the hospital and after conducting medical test, police registered a case.

The accused three have been identified as Rehan, Saleem and Sonu — all local auto-rickshaw drivers at Nand Nagri. Sources said that still the girl could give a sketchy description of the entire incident. Police have started interrogating the accused three for detail. Cops also taking help of counseling to get a detail description from the complainant girl. “There are discrepancies in the victim’s statement and we are verifying it,” said a police officer.

After completing my story I called up additional deputy commissioner of police (New Delhi) Madhur Verma to get the information about the Mandir Marg SHO. He explained that there was no such incident or allegation against his junior. We talked for almost ten minutes regarding various rumours that start erupting during night hours. “It is just a rumour and there is no truth in that and no allegation of sexual assault against the SHO,” Verma clarified.

I wrote two words to the fellow reporter in chat who first fargi news. He called and said, “It’s not fargi and I got confirmation with Deputy Commissioner of Police SBS Tyagi.”

We argued for almost five minutes wherein I stated that DCP’s junior Madhu Verma stated that its might be just rumour.  He, however, stressed me to confirm. Before calling Tygai, I thought to check with my source. I called up my source who stated that it is a month old incident and it not a sexual assault case but sexual harassment case and assistant commissioner of police is looking in the matter.  

“The allegations were leveled by a woman sub-inspector working under him,” source said.

I called up DCP Tyagi and before I could say anything he said that it is a case of sexual harassment leveled against SHO a month ago and enquiry is on. As Tyagi and I share a trust, I asked him what the real story is and what he has found in enquiry. “A 45-year-old woman sub-inspector a child of two alleged that she was sexual harassed by the SHO. When we checked, we found that the SHO asked her repeatedly to come on time and she was not giving any heed to it and when he angry shouted at her, she alleged sexual harassment. We have conducted enquiry and he was clean chit and when we transferred the woman sub-inspector she went on leave for six months. Now, if you want to write story it’s up to you,” Tyagi said and I laughed and said there is no story.    

I left for home after doing another story that a man was charred to death when a fire broke out in the car which he was driving at Pul Prahladpur.

I was wondering how the heinous crime is now being used to settle score most of the times and how the real victims are ignored.

Next day, I was surprised to find that that a few newspapers carried this. I just smiled…

Sting is king in AAP era

THE day after Delhi Chief Minister Arvind Kejriwal declared open season for sting operations against corrupt government officials, sales of spy gadgets went through the roof in the Capital. A Mail Today investigation that covered the Capital’s electronic hotspots, including Palika Bazaar, Lajpat Rai Market and Shakarpur, found a thriving spy gadget market where less than ` 500 can buy the equipment needed for a basic sting operation.

More money in hand only means more sophisticated snooping, and only the spy is the limit, discovered.

From spy cameras installed in mangalsutras, necklaces, earrings, and wristwatches to pens and key rings, sound and image recording devices are easily available for between Rs 500 and Rs 50,000. The gadgets are easy to use, and trendy to boot.

The one dark lining to the sting cloud is that most of the clever stuff comes from China, and there aren’t any warranties available.

Soaring sales

“ The sale of spy gadgets has gone up by almost 90 per cent overnight. Generally, we used to manage to sell around 12 spy gadgets but today I have already sold around 25 such gadgets so far,” Sachin Kumar, owner of Royal Palace Shop at Palika Bazaar , told Mail Today on Thursday afternoon. “ Some the buyers even talked about AAP,” he added.

Manoj, the proprietor of another spy gadget outlet at Chandni Chowk’s Lajpat Rai Market, said he had sold around such gadgets to AAP volunteers a few days ago, and that had bulk orders in the pipeline. “ It’s true, sales have gone up tremendously,” he said.

Miniature cameras are by far most sought after device, according to Manoj. The six hotselling gadgets, he said, were cameras in pens, keyrings, buttons, watches, pen- drives and eyeglasses. “ They are handy and user- friendly. One can charge the battery with Universal Serial Bus ( USB) cable and battery backup ranges from five to eight hours, depending usage,” he explained.

The spy pen and keyrings were available for Rs 500, after the mandatory round of haggling of course. “ The pen spy cameras almost similar at all the shops but the designs and quality of keyrings vary,” Manoj said.

Spy cameras installed in electronic car keys are also available but they come dearer, at between Rs 1,500 and Rs 2,000.

Funky as well and plain eyeglasses straddle a spectrum of price bands too, given their utility.

The cameras installed inside these are tiny but have high resolution as well as depth of field.

The most interesting item by is what Palika’s electronic hustlers call the SIM camera.

A tiny box, about the size of matchbox, and its applications have no limit but one’s imagination. “ One can put a mobile SIM card inside it and leave it wherever he wants to a conduct a sting. After calling on that number from anywhere, it gets activated and records video and audio of the entire room area as tiny cameras are installed on every side and send it to the calling mobile phone,” said Ajay, owner of Electronic Solutions.

That’s not the only way, Ajay said. “ Whenever there is any sound in the immediate vicinity of the box, it will call the paired mobile automatically. The device has an International Mobile Station Equipment Identity ( IMEI) number, and its cost ranges from Rs 2,500 to Rs 5,000.

Versatile devices

“ One can use iPod headphones to adjust the focus of revolving cameras installed inside the iPod and hear or record from few hundred metres,” said Suresh, proprietor of a small shop in Shakarpur, adding that this kind of spyware is expensive and is ordered only on specific request.

Other shopkeepers remained dismissive about the AAP sting effect. “ Most buyers are school- and college going students; they buy it for various purposes,” one said with a smirk. “ A few purchase them to record lectures, and some to settle scores,” added another who claimed to sell 10 spy pens every day.

Written by me and published in Mail Today