A representation image (News Darpan)
On July 26, the Malpe police in Karnataka instituted two separate FIRs relating to the Udupi videotape scandal. The move came following a widespread backlash on social media against the police’s inaction. The First FIR has been registered against three female students who filmed other students in the washroom, and the second case is linked to uploading the same video to YouTube.
News agency ANI reported on July 26 the Udupi Video Incident. It wrote on Twitter, “Udupi Police has filed two cases. One case linked to three female students and college administration regarding the deletion of a video of a student filmed in the toilet. The second case is linked to the uploading of a hidden camera video on YouTube channels”.
As per the press note, the police informed that two separate FIRs have been instituted in the videotape case from Netra Jyoti College. In the first case, the Malpe police station in-charge voluntarily registered a complaint against three female students for filming intimate videos of other female students in the washroom. Whereas, on the other case, has been instituted regarding the uploading of one such clip to the One India Kannada YouTube channel. It also mentions that a social media user Kalu Singh Chouhan uploaded the same video on social media “communal enmity” and spoiling social harmony.
It is pertinent to mention that, A video, claimed to be that of the incident was allegedly uploaded onto the YouTube channel of a local news website, and shared by an individual on the microblogging site Twitter, as well. This video was later clarified to be from an incident in Tamil Nadu, according to a notice from the All College Student Power.
The FIR has been registered at the Malpe police station against the three female students as well as the college administration, the news agency PTI reported. It has been filed under various sections of the Indian Penal Code (IPC), including sections 509 (insulting modesty of a woman), 204 (destruction of evidence), 175 (not obeying a legal order), 34 (act done by several people with common intention), and 66 (e) of the Information Technology Act.
Police charged the suspended students and the college authorities with failure to produce the details and evidence relating to the incident that could spoil the reputation of the victim, the news agency PTI further reported.
Besides, in response to the state government’s lack of seriousness in handling the Udupi videotape scandal, the National Commission for Women has taken cognizance of the matter. The Commission will send a team to Udupi to conduct a thorough inquiry into the incident at the Netra Jyoti College. Khushbu Sundar, the South India member of the National Commission for Women, will lead the investigation during her visit to Udupi. This decision was revealed by a former member, Shyamala Kunder.
The Udupi Videotape Scandal
A video scandal unfolded in Karnataka, at a private eye hospital and nursing home, Netra Jyoti, located in Udupi, when some of the female students found cameras inside the bathrooms. Following the recovery, the college administration suspended as many as three girls with immediate effect. The incident is said to have happened on July 21.
As per the media reports, the accused students have been identified as Alimatul Shaifa, Shabanaz, and Aliya. They were all students at the nursing home. Netra Jyoti College of Udupi, located near the Ambalpady Bypass and is a famous nursing home in the area.
The matter escalated when it was revealed that all the accused students belonging to one community were collecting the clips of Hindu students only. Later on, they supplied these clips to the men in their community. Further reports indicate that the intrusive videos were not just limited to private sharing but were also disseminated on wider social media platforms.
Activists involved
On July 24, the founder of the so-called ‘Fact-Checking’ website Alt News, Mohammad Zubair, targeted Hindu activists who posted against the inaction of the police in the Udupi videotape case. Taking screenshots of their Tweet, Zubair called their allegations false and baseless.
Activist and social worker Shefali Vadiya on July 24, wrote from her official Twitter account, “Why is NO mainstream media talking about Alimatul Shaifa, Shabanaz and Aliya, the three Muzlim girls who secretly placed cameras in female toilets of their college and shared the videos and photos in their community WhatsApp groups? This happened in #Udupi!”
Similarly, Human rights activist, Rashmi Samant on July 24, from her official Twitter account wrote, “I’m from Udupi and nobody is talking about Alimatul Shaifa, Shabanaz and Aliya who placed cameras in female toilets of their college to record hundreds of unsuspecting Hindu girls. Videos and phots that were then circulated in community WhatsApp groups by the perpetrators.”
Zubair made such allegations against Hindu activists and influencers based on a report by ‘The News Minute’. The report quotes the Additional Superintendent of Police for Udupi, ST Siddalingappa, saying that the incident was an isolated one within the college and had no communal aspect to it. “We looked through the phone and didn’t find any such video. We thoroughly investigated the matter and there is no evidence that the video was shared. It was a one-off incident in the college and has no communal angle to it. The purported victim doesn’t want to file a police complaint.”
Following the police action the, editor-in-chief of the web portal The News Minute, Dhanya Rajendran wrote on Twitter, “This was the context. The chairman of the college *SAID* the three women *SAID* it was a prank. *They said*. Their DEFENSE. How difficult is it to understand this? And if you ask me, keeping a camera to record in a bathroom is bullying and harassment. The FIR says they meant to record a friend, but another woman used the bathroom. Even recording a friend is bullying and harassment. Fit for a police complaint.”
On the other hand, the fact-checker Zubair is still justifying the students who are booked by the Udupi police. In response to a Tweet by News Agency ANI informing about the FIR, Zubair wrote, “Hello @ANI, This in misinformation again! The second FIR is linked to an old Tamil Nadu video on a hidden camera which was being circulated with doctored audio, It was shared to give the impression that the incident was related to the Udupi incident”
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