It is alleged that four people from the transgender community, returning at night after partying at a hotel in Agartala, the capital of Tripura, were stopped by some policemen and a journalist on the way and took them to a women’s police station, where they were forcibly stripped naked.
(Symbol Photo: Reuters)
Agartala: The transgender community has accused the Tripura Police of wrongfully detaining four members of the community who were returning after partying from a hotel on the night of January 8 and forcibly made them take off their clothes at the police station to identify their gender. went.
According to the report of the Indian Express, people of the transgender community were also forcibly taken in writing that they will never again ‘cross dressing’ (wearing clothes of the opposite sex) and if they do so they will be arrested. .
The victims, in their complaint detailing the violation of rights under Section 377, the Supreme Court’s decision on the National Legal Services Authority (NALSA) and the right to privacy, sought “due justice” at West Agartala police station on the evening of January 12. Demanding complaint has been lodged.
LGBTQIA+ rights activist and transgender herself, Sneha Gupta Roy, while talking to the media at Agartala Press Club said, “Whatever happened to the victims has hurt the entire community mentally and emotionally. People have to learn to be more inclusive of non-binary identities of human beings (people who are neither male nor female)..’
Recalling that horrifying experience, 19-year-old Mohini said, “We are professional make-up artists and went to a hotel party on January 8. When we were returning home at 10:40 pm, four of us were stopped by some policemen and a person who was posing as a journalist.
Mohini said, ‘They teased us, teased and mentally tortured us by making fun of our dress. We were then taken to the West Agartala Women’s Police Station and at around 11.30 pm women policemen forcibly stripped us. At that time some male policemen were also present there.
The victims alleged that they were taken to the police station on foot at 11:45 pm in winter, where besides Mohini, her three friends Sangam, Raj and Tapas were made to sit on the ground and refused to give anything to eat or drink. been done.
The victims have written in their complaint that the most embarrassing and hurtful incident for them was when the policemen kept their wigs and inner garments with them.
Mohini and her friends told that the police had accused them of extorting money from people with the help of false identities. In the complaint, he has demanded that he should get proper justice against this illegal and shameful incident and legal action should be taken against the police officers and the journalist.
Advocate Niranjana Roy, who is advising the complainants on this issue, said that the incident not only violates the rights of transgenders, but is also a violation of human rights. Cross dressing cannot be considered an offense under any law. It is a matter of struggle for one’s existence and identity.
He said that we will fight all legal battles to get justice.
According to the report, no one has commented on the matter from West Agartala Police Station, while a senior Tripura Police official said that a report has been sought on the subject. Whoever is responsible will not be spared.
At the same time, the journalist who is accused of torturing the victims says that he was not aware of the rights of the LGBTQ community.
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