Northeast delegation to demand women’s safety in Delhi

NEW DELHI - A delegation of northeastern NGOs would Friday meet officials of the union home ministry to discuss the safety of women from the region in the capital following the abduction and gangrape of a BPO employee from Mizoram.

“We wanted to meet the home minister (P.Chidambaram) but he is pre-occupied with some earlier commitments. So, we will be meeting the joint secretary, M. Gopal Reddy, tomorrow (Friday) at North Block, Madhu Chandra, spokesperson of the Northeast Support Centre and Helpline, told IANS.

The delegation had last week met Delhi Chief Minister Sheila Dikshit to discuss the issue of northeastern women’s safety in the capital. A memorandum with all their demands and also the minutes of their meeting with Dikshit would be submitted to the home ministry.

“We want a single women helpline number across India. In addition, the Delhi Police should be more vigilant and strict and swift action should be taken against the culprits, Chandra added.

“This is not just about the girl from Mizoram who was raped but is a much bigger problem. Girls in the capital are not safe and we want concrete steps to enhance their current levels of security,” he said.

The 30-year-old BPO staffer from Mizoram was Nov 23 abducted by five men and gangraped in a moving goods carrier. All the five attackers have been arrested.