New Delhi: Delhi Police Assistant Commissioner of Police (ACP) Vivek Bhagat has come under scrutiny following allegations of sexual harassment by a woman journalist covering protests against the Chief Election Commissioner at Jantar Mantar on October 3. Two other women journalists have reportedly raised similar complaints, intensifying calls for an investigation into the incident.
Independent journalist Rosy alleged that Bhagat groped and pushed her while she was recording the detention of an All India Students’ Association (AISA) activist. In a social media account of the incident, she claimed that the officer touched her inappropriately from behind while she was filming and moved away after she screamed. The allegations have triggered widespread criticism online and demands for the registration of a First Information Report (FIR).
The controversy has placed the 2017-batch Delhi, Andaman and Nicobar Islands Civil Service (DANICS) officer under public scrutiny. Bhagat is currently posted as ACP of the Connaught Place circle in New Delhi district, which includes the area around Jantar Mantar.
The latest allegations follow another incident in July, when Bhagat reportedly sustained head injuries and broken teeth during a student protest near Jantar Mantar. He had said that he was attacked by a mob while attempting to assist an injured colleague. Videos showing him injured subsequently circulated on social media.
Bhagat previously served as ACP of Samaypur Badli in Delhi’s Outer North district, where he led investigations into two separate cases involving unidentified bodies discovered in April 2021. Police teams reportedly identified the victims and arrested six suspects within a week. He also served in the District Investigative Unit and was attached to the Lieutenant Governor’s Secretariat as an Aide-de-Camp in 2022.
A civil engineering graduate of Delhi College of Engineering, Bhagat secured the 967th rank in the Civil Services Examination before joining DANICS.
The allegations have prompted journalists’ organisations, activists and leaders associated with the Citizens for Justice and Peace (CJP) to demand an FIR and an impartial investigation. They have cited the Supreme Court’s 2013 judgment in Lalita Kumari v. Government of Uttar Pradesh, which held that registration of an FIR is mandatory when information discloses a cognisable offence, subject to the legal framework laid down by the court.
The source report says Delhi Police has faced criticism over its handling of the complaints and has warned against the circulation of fake videos concerning the officer. However, the allegations against Bhagat remain allegations and require investigation; no finding of guilt has been established in the information provided.
