06 June,2011 06:28 AM IST | | Shashank Shekhar and Amit Kumar
MiD DAY found about 25 female supporters of Ramdev in hiding at an orphanage near Connaught Place
They are in hiding, but still in fear. An orphanage at 13 Barakhamba Road near Connaught Place has become an unlikely refuge for about twenty five female followers of Baba Ramdev. They claim they were manhandled by drunken police officers after they formed a human barrier to protect the yoga guru from the cops.
Refuge: Some of the women who came from other cities took shelter
in an orphanage as they didn't have any place to go. Pics/Mid Day
They were initially hesitant on speaking to the media but finally some of them shared recollections of their midnight horror with MiD DAY. "We formed a shield around Baba so that police could not arrest him. The drunken cops then started hitting us with their elbows on our chest and abdomen. I was still not allowing them go so one of the police officers hit me on my head and blood started oozing out," said Shaija Yadav, a resident of Mahendragarh in Haryana. She also alleged that even after Baba was detained cops kept torturing supporters.
Soft targets?
There was also annoyance about male constables forcibly evicting women who were jostled and pushed around. There were allegedly no female constables in sight till early dawn, and at night male policemen, in contravention of the law, allegedly used force on many female protesters.
Many of these women are from out town and had nowhere to go in the middle of the night. Orissa resident Sarojni Patnaiyak who came to Delhi two days ago, says she was beaten by male police officers who even tore her sari. "The police barbarism was unimaginable. The male cops started thrashing us and they even ripped my sari. They pushed me out and I could not even take my slipper. I walked barefoot from Ramlila Maidan to Barakhamba Road to find shelter in a city, which is new to me," said Sarojini who has been a follower of Ramdev for several years.
There were many female supporters who were detained by police and later dropped outside Delhi border near Anand Vihar. "I am here from Bareilly and I have no idea about the city. Police detained me and dropped me near Anand Vihar in the wee hours. I neither had my luggage and money. Fortunately there was other supporters who brought me to the orphanage," said Subhadra, another Ramdev supporter.
On the other side, during the commotion Additional DCP DK Gupta was surrounded by some women who tried to tear his official uniform. Gupta managed to free himself, but some of his medals were detached in the melee. Later, female police personnel came to the rescue of their senior officer.
