By TCN News,
New Delhi: Dr Meenakshi Sundriyal, wife of recently deceased activist Khurshid Anwar, has written to the National Commission for Women, asking for clarification regarding how the statutory body handled the complaint against her late husband.
It may be recalled that Khurshid Anwar, executive director of a New Delhi based NGO, allegedly committed suicide on the morning of the 18th of last month, after he was accused of rape by a fellow activist.
It appears that the trigger for this extreme step was a TV show broadcast in prime time by a well known Hindi news channel. This broadcast, Anwar’s friends and family allege, was extremely prejudicial against the late activist. A sitting member of the NCW also participated in the show.
“The allegations against my husband first surfaced in September, however in spite of his appeal to those accusing him, no FIR was filed against him nor a medical test performed on the complainant. He was keen for a chance to clear his name legally, but that was denied to him and then irresponsible news channels ran with the story”, said Sundriyal.
“The NCW’s role in the matter is shrouded in mystery. Apparently someone sent them a CD containing the accusations against my husband sometime in the second week of December. We want to know whether the established procedures were followed before the NCW requested the police to file an FIR against him in the absence of the complainant for well over three months?”, she added.
Campaign for Khurshid Anwar spokesperson Ankita Chandranath, a student at the Jawaharlal Nehru University said that the NCW was duty bound to act according to laid down rules and procedures. “Why was a member of the NCW present on a show of such a nature. A veritable media trial was held against the accused, ultimately pushing him to suicide”, she asked.
