On October 12, Delhi Commission for Women (DCW) chief Swati Maliwal alleged that she had received rape threats on social media platforms after she sought the removal of filmmaker Sajid Khan from the reality show Bigg Boss. Notably, Maliwal had written to Union Information and Broadcasting Minister Anurag Thakur and sought Khan’s removal from the show over allegations of sexual harassment by several women in the industry against him.
Rape threats against Maliwal
Maliwal tweeted, “Ever since I wrote a letter to the I&B minister to get #SajidKhan out of Bigg Boss, I have been receiving rape threats on Instagram. Obviously, they want to stop our work. I am giving a complaint to Delhi Police. Register FIR and investigate. Arrest those who are behind them.”
जब से #SajidKhan को Big Boss से बाहर करने के लिए I&B मंत्री को चिट्ठी लिखी है, तबसे मुझे इंस्टाग्राम पर रेप की धमकी दी जा रही है। ज़ाहिर है ये हमारा काम रोकना चाहते हैं। दिल्ली पुलिस को शिकायत दे रही हूं। FIR दर्ज करें और जाँच करें। जो लोग भी इनके पीछे है उनको अरेस्ट करें! pic.twitter.com/8YBq5oJ5TV
— Swati Maliwal (@SwatiJaiHind) October 12, 2022
In her tweet, Maliwal shared two screenshots of private messages on Instagram. The first screenshot was of a user ag55657, and the second screenshot was of Instagram user Hrithik Sheldekar. Both the screenshots appeared to have been sent to Maliwal from one Rahul. Some of the reports have suggested that the name of one of the senders is Rahul but that does not seem the case. Rahul seems to be the person who has shared the screenshots with Maliwal as both the screenshots have the name written on them with “All Media” written next to the name.
Earlier, the DCW chief had said on Twitter that numerous complaints against him show his ‘disgusting mentality. She said, “Ten women had accused Sajid Khan of sexual harassment during the #MeToo movement. All these complaints show the disgusting mentality of Sajid. Now, this man has been given a place in Bigg Boss, which is wrong. I have written to @ianuragthakur to have Sajid Khan removed from this show.”
It is notable that Sajid Khan’s participation in the 16th season of the reality show Bigg Boss has raised many eyebrows. People have expressed their anger on social media. Notably, actresses including Saoni Chopra, Sherlyn Chopra, Mandana Karimi and Aahana Kumra, among others, had accused Sajid Khan of sexual misconduct. Singer Sona Mohapatra also criticised his entry into the house. Mohapatra had alleged she faced harassment at the hands of popular music composer Anu Malik.
