Delhi forms a human chain against rape on Women's Day

As the city celebrated women power and female achievers on Women's Day, there were also many events, plays and workshops held across Delhi to make sure people didn't forget that women's safety is still a huge issue. That was also the aim of the hundreds of Delhiites who joined Delhi Commission for Women (DCW) volunteers to form a human chain in Connaught Place, demanding strict action against rapists, especially in child rape cases.

'I wrote Nirbhaya's name on the posters as it still haunts me'
The volunteers marched from one end of Central Park to the other, carrying placards with slogans like 'Baby Nirbhaya ab aur nahin', 'Don't tell me how to dress, tell them not to rape', 'Mere kapde chhote nahin, chhoti tumhari soch hai'. There were plays and performances as well to highlight the issue of violence against women. Devanshi Sharma, a college student, said, "I wrote Nirbhaya's name on our posters because that incident still haunts me. When we were creating these posters, we realised how important it is to be a part of such campaigns."
Despite the heat, the event saw a huge turnout
Swati Maliwal, DCW chairperson, joined the volunteers and got emotional after seeing the turnout. She said, "Aaj mujhe pehli baar aisa lag raha hai ki rape rokne ki is ladai mein DCW akela nahi hai."
Manish Sisodia
Also present at the event were Deputy CM Manish Sisodia, singer Rabbi Shergill, musician-actor Luke Kenny and wrestler Yogeshwar Dutt.
Rabbi Shergill
'We came for shopping, but joined the protest instead'
A number of youngsters and professionals who were in CP for lunch or shopping to celebrate Women's Day, decided to drop their plans and join the volunteers instead. Khushboo Gaur, an artist, told us, "I was here for lunch with my family, but we stopped to watch a play here instead. They were doing a scene where a girl is being molested, and the crowd shouts, 'Humne kuch nahi dekha'. It was so hard-hitting that some men even left the area."
Women protester at the event
When onlookers stopped to ask volunteers, 'Yeh kya Nirbhaya ke liye kar rahe ho? Aaj toh December 16 nahi hai', a volunteer replied, "Ek Nirbhaya hoti toh December 16 ko karte, lakhon Nirbhaya ke liye saal ke itne din bhi nahi hain."
Women protesters at the event
Another group that had joined the DCW volunteers told us that they dropped their shopping plans because they couldn't think of a better way to celebrate Women's Day.
Megha Mishra, a corporate employee, told us, "As our office is in CP and we had half-day off, we decided to go shopping to celebrate Women's Day. When we came here and saw so many people protesting against rape, we dropped our shopping plan and joined them instead."
Artists staged a play to voice their opinion on the issue
'Garmi toh hai, par gussa zyada hai!'
The volunteers told us that they picked their posters according to the cause they felt strongly about. Nivedita Verma, a Class X student, told us, "I picked the poster which had a slogan on people being judged for the kind of clothes they wear. I want people to realise that clothes are not a problem, but their mentality is."

Not just youngsters, the protestors included women of all age groups, and even the DCW members were surprised with the turnout. Mukta Devi, a 62-year-old homemaker, told us, "I came from Ashok Nagar with my neighbours. Garmi bahut hai, par hamare gusse se zyada nahin. Roz akhbaar padh kar gussa aata hai, aaj awaaz uthane ka mauka mila toh kaise jaane doon?"
Swati Maliwal, chairperson, DCW, with actor-composer Luke Kenny and wrestler Yogeshwar Dutt