Delhi: Videos of men climbing walls of Delhi University's all-women's college Miranda House during the celebration of Diwali at the institute have led to uproar across the nation as it has been reported that the men indulged in "cat-calling, groping, sexist sloganeering, and more".
Videos shared on social media by students of Miranda House show that the men are climbing walls to get into the college while some are seen to be raising slogans on the campus.
The videos that went viral of the incident
"Men entering safe spaces to harass gender minorities is nothing new, but they outdo themselves every time," said a tweet by Sobhana, a student at Miranda House who shared multiple videos of male students from Delhi University entering the college campus.
After the festival started, there were extensive student lines that circled the college in less than an hour. Attendees were told to leave the area because it could no longer accommodate more people.
Uproar among government officials, netizens, over the incident
The incident has created a furor on social media as officials, netizens asked for details of the incident to be made public.
The deputy commissioner of the Delhi Police and the principal of Miranda House have received separate letters from Delhi Commission for Women Chairperson Swati Maliwal regarding the incident, in which she has a number of questions about the police case and the security measures put in place for the celebration of the upcoming Diwali festival.
"Boys forcibly entered the ongoing Diwali fair at Miranda House, one of the most famous colleges in Delhi. The girls have made serious allegations of molestation and exploitation. We are sending a notice to Delhi Police and the college administration. How did this hooliganism happen? What security arrangements were made?" said a tweet by Maliwal.
Delhi Police files FIR against unidentified men, checks CCTV
The Delhi Police has also taken a Suo moto cognisance over the incident and has registered an FIR against unidentified men. In light of the video, Deputy Commissioner of Police (North) Sagar Singh Kalsi has also said that the individuals have been charged with trespass. The police officials also arrived at the campus to review CCTV footage of the incident.
What Principal of Miranda House has to say
According to Miranda College Principal B Nanda, the volume of people was unprecedented, hence the gates were locked for the protection of the pupils.
"This did not deter the crowd who tried to enter the college after scaling the walls. Police immediately took action and controlled the situation," Nanda told the wire agency, PTI. Nanda also said that so far no incidents of sexual harassment have been reported from the institute, a claim sharply rebuted by the students.
New rules at institute to curb such incidents
The institute has now established a subcommittee to review the event planning processes and has submitted an urgent SoP that forbids open events without advance registration.
The principal stated in a notice that the college has taken "serious note" of the incident.
"A series of emergency meetings were held to discuss the matter and draw out strategies and examine the gaps in the arrangement. A SubCommittee has been formed to revisit the procedures of holding calendar events," the note read.
To ensure that the college continues to remain a free and enabling space for all its stakeholders, the college has provided a standard operating procedure (SoP) is provided to take immediate measures
"No open events without prior registrations are allowed. The registration number to be kept at manageable limits. Any Fair/Mela is only to be an intra-college event. All cultural events have to be organized after 2 pm. This is to ensure that the college continues to remain a free and enabling space for all its stakeholders," the varsity said.
