Bulli Bai: FIR registered against 'online auction' on Muslim women
What's the story
The Delhi cyber police have registered an FIR against a dubious application that uploaded images of Muslim women "for auction." The complaint was filed by a journalist who informed a case was filed under IPC sections 153A (promoting enmity on religious grounds), 153B (imputations harmful to national integration), 354A, and 509 for sexual harassment. An FIR was also filed by Mumbai's cyber police.
Context
Why does it matter?
More than 100 Muslim women's photographs, including notable actors, journalists, activists, and politicians, were placed on the app for auction as "Bulli Bai" of the day. In July 2021, a similar application named "Sulli deals" on GitHub displayed photographs of more than 80 Muslim women up "for sale as maids." The terms "bulli" and "sulli" are both offensive terms for Muslim women.
Probe
Government takes cognizance of incident
Union Minister for Electronics and IT Ashwini Vaishnaw said the administration is coordinating with local police to resolve the issue. The Indian Computer Emergency Response System (Cert-In) has been instructed to form a "high level committee" to investigate the event, senior government officials reportedly said. The National Commission for Women also wrote to the Delhi Police Commissioner requesting that the case be investigated immediately.
Complaint
'Content aimed at insulting Muslim women'
A Delhi-based journalist accused unknown persons of spreading hatred, sexual harassment, and insulting women in a police case filed on Saturday. "I was shocked to find...that a website had a doctored picture of me in an improper unacceptable context," she said. "The...content...is aimed at insulting Muslim women...and the entire website seems to have been designed with the intent of embarrassing Muslim women," she added.
Reaction
Opposition parties demand serious action
"The humiliation and communal hatred of women will stop only when we all stand in one voice against it," tweeted Congress leader Rahul Gandhi in Hindi. The websites have been disabled, but no arrests have been made, Shiv Sena leader Priyanka Chaturvedi tweeted. Chaturvedi had also addressed the issue of women from religious minorities being targeted in July.