Delhi Police ASI suspended for allegedly molesting woman from Northeast
New Delhi: A Delhi Police Assistant Sub-Inspector (ASI) has been suspended following serious allegations that he sexually harassed and molested a young woman from the Northeast during an unauthorized search in the Maharani Bagh area on Saturday.
The officer, identified as ASI Virandar Kumar of the Ashram Police Station, is accused of assaulting the woman on the morning of September 13. According to reports, Kumar entered a shop near the Ashram Metro Station around 10 a.m. to conduct a search, purportedly for alcohol, without a warrant or legal justification.
Eyewitnesses and a viral social media post allege that after failing to find anything illegal, the officer smiled, grabbed the victim's face, and inappropriately touched her private parts, leaving her deeply traumatised.
The incident gained widespread attention after an Instagram user shared details of the alleged assault, sparking public outrage. Netizens quickly mobilized online, demanding accountability using the hashtag #JusticeForOurNortheastSister.
Following formal complaints lodged by the victim's family, along with representatives from student unions and community advocacy groups, senior police officials have initiated action. ASI Kumar has been placed under immediate suspension pending a full investigation into the matter.
While the suspension has been acknowledged as a positive first step, community leaders and protesters are demanding stricter measures. They are calling for the officer's complete termination from service and for criminal charges to be filed against him for molestation and abuse of authority under the Indian Penal Code.
Advocates for the victim plan to continue their engagement with police officials on Monday to ensure comprehensive legal action is pursued. The Delhi Police is yet to issue an official public statement regarding the allegations against its officer.
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Trump says he called off dispatching envoys to Iran talks
Dubai (PTI): US President Donald Trump said he told his top envoys Steve Witkoff and Jared Kushner not to travel to Pakistan to negotiate with Iran, stating on Fox News that "they can call us any time they want”.
Iran's President Masoud Pezeshkian said his country won't negotiate while the United States imposes a blockade on its ports. Pezeshkian told Pakistani Prime Minister Shehbaz Sharif during a phone call Saturday night that the US “should first remove operational obstacles, including the blockade,” to allow a new round of negotiations, according to the ISNA and Tasnim news agencies in Iran.
Iranian Foreign Minister Abbas Araghchi left Pakistan on Saturday evening, two Pakistani officials told The Associated Press. Iran's state-run IRNA news agency said Araghchi is expected back in Pakistan's capital Islamabad on Sunday.
Trump said Thursday that Israel and Lebanon agreed to extend a ceasefire between Israel and Hezbollah by three weeks after talks at the White House. The meeting was the second high-level negotiation between the two countries this month. The initial 10-day ceasefire had been due to expire Monday.
The Trump administration is placing economic sanctions on a major China-based oil refinery and roughly 40 shipping companies and tankers involved in transporting Iranian oil.
The move announced Friday is part of the administration's threat to impose secondary sanctions on entities doing business with Iran in an effort to cut off Iran's oil exports, which are a key source of its revenue.
Airlines worldwide have begun cancelling flights as the war in the Middle East strains jet fuel supplies and pushes up prices. Experts have offered information to travelers about what to do if a flight is cancelled.
Iran President Masoud Pezeshkian said his country won't negotiate while the United States imposes a blockade on its ports, according to Iranian media.
Pezeshkian told Pakistani Prime Minister Shehbaz Sharif during a phone call Saturday night that the US “should first remove operational obstacles, including the blockade”, to allow a new round of negotiations, the ISNA and Tasnim news agencies reported.
The Pakistani premier described the call as a “warm and constructive discussion”.
Iranian Foreign Minister Abbas Araghchi concluded a one-day trip to Pakistan's capital Islamabad on Saturday after meeting with Pakistani military and government officials.
The trip did not produce a breakthrough in efforts to relaunch negotiations after US President Donald Trump canceled a planned trip by his envoys to Islamabad.
Iran's state-run IRNA news agency said Foreign Minister Abbas Araghchi will return to Pakistan after his current visit to Oman on his way to visiting Russia.
The report said he was expected to be back in Pakistan's capital Islamabad on Sunday and would join other members of his delegation who had gone to Tehran for consultations and “instructions on the topics related to the end of the war.”
