Pinjra Tod night march in South campus for women safety

Asserting rights of women to be in public spaces, campaigners of Pinjra Tod, a women’s right group, organised a night march in the South Campus of the Delhi University on Monday. 

The march comes after a recent spate of reported incidents of sexual harassment in the poorly -lit lanes adjacent to the Lady Shri Ram College LSR. The lanes, that connect PGs to the college, is used by the students of the women’s college.

The march began from the back gate of LSR at 5.30 pm and went through Kailash Colony, Amar Colony and National Park. These areas host PGs where women students of colleges like Gargi, Kamla Nehru, Deshbandhu and others live.  

“We receives an overwhelming response for the campaign. More than 500 students joined the march to claim the streets and to send a clear message against sexual violence,” said Devanjana, a member of Pinjra Tod.  

The march aims to highlight the “exorbitant rents charged by PG owners and to demand the implementation of UGC guidelines for prevention of sexual harassment in educational institutes.

Earlier on September 28, Pinjra Tod, also organised a similar march through areas around North campus such as Kamla Nagar, Roop Nagar that house PGs for students in the North campus colleges. 

This march culminated at Vijaynagar tea point, a popular joint for DU students, to “keep a night vigil against sexual harassment”. 

“The Vijay Nagar tea point, which is usually occupied only by men, took a different dimension that night as women took over and redefined the nature of that space,” read a social media post of Pinjra Tod.

Pinjra Tod, a year-old campaign, has grown from a Facebook page to a vocal movement for demanding equal hostel rules for boys and girls and for safe and affordable accommodations for girls. It is an autonomous collective body of students across Universities in the national Capital.