The chairperson of NGO Love Commandos was arrested on Tuesday after inspection of its Paharganj shelter home for allegedly intimidating couples residing there, the Delhi Commission for Women (DCW) said on Wednesday.
The NGO allegedly helped couples facing opposition to their relationship or the threat of ‘honour killing’.
DCP (Central) M.S. Randhawa said Sanjoy Sachdev was arrested on Tuesday and sent to jail following the inspection, which was held after the DCW received a complaint against Mr. Sachdev.
A DCW member said, “It was observed that the NGO was indulging in illegal confinement and extorting money from couples under the guise of providing them a safe home. It also was learnt that four couples staying there were being ill-treated, had been illegally confined and were forced to pay huge arbitrary sums as fees.” The inmates claimed that their documents, including identity proofs, had been taken away by the staff, the DCW officials said, adding that the couples have been shifted to other shelter homes.
‘Abused us’
One of the rescued persons said, “A team of five, including the owner and the staff members, abused us daily. They did not allow us to contact anyone on the outside. We had to deposit our phones and documents on the first day itself. We were not allowed to contact our families or go back home.”
The women rescued alleged that Mr. Sachdev and the staff would consume liquor in front of them and stare at them. They claimed they had to pass through Mr. Sachdev’s room to use the restroom. DCW chairperson Swati Maliwal said, “Couples facing the threat of honour killing in our nation undergo immense trauma. For an NGO to extort and abuse these vulnerable young persons in the name of helping them is extremely shameful.The NGO had approached us with cases earlier but we had no idea that it was an extortion racket.”
Mr. Randhawa said, “We have registered an FIR under IPC Sections 342 [punishment for wrongful confinement], 384 [punishment for extortion], 506 [criminal intimidation] and 509 [word, gesture or act intended to insult the modesty of a woman] at Paharganj police station.”
The couples staying in the shelter home have recorded their statement before a Magistrate under Section 164 of CrPC.