Delhi Police refers journalists’ complaints to Crime Branch

Delhi Police has referred complaints from three women journalists alleging mistreatment during their detention at an October 3 protest near Jantar Mantar to the Crime Branch for inquiry, the force said. Police said the complaints were registered and medical examinations were conducted. The inquiry’s findings have not been reported, and the available accounts do not establish whether a first information report was registered specifically for the complaints. One of the journalists, an independent reporter, accused Assistant Commissioner of Police Vivek Bhagat of sexually assaulting and pushing her during the protest. She said she was covering the detention of All India Students Association president Neha Bora when she questioned the absence of women officers at the scene. The journalist alleged that Bhagat touched her breasts and pushed her. Her allegation has not been independently verified, and no Crime Branch findings have been made public. The journalist said she went to a police station to file a complaint and waited for hours without an FIR being registered.