Delhi Police seized AISA national president Neha Bora in an unmarked vehicle on Oct. 7 while she was attempting to march towards Jantar Mantar. No woman officer was in the car, and Bora’s phone and bag were taken, according to AISA members who could not reach her after the takedown.
AISA, AIDWA, and other activists rallied on Parliament Street Police Station, demanding answers. Asha Sharma, Maimoona Mollah, RTI activist Anjali Bharadwaj, and Navsharan Singh all marched to the station, looking for information on Bora and other women activists allegedly seized in private cars.
TMC’s Rajya Sabha leader Derek O’Brien posted on X that he had been anxious when Bora was taken, but he was relieved when she was freed from Narela PS. CPI(ML) Liberation’s Dipankar Bhattacharya called the detention an abduction, demanding the police disclose her whereabouts immediately. RJD MP Manoj Jha slammed the police action as barbaric, warning that the images would haunt the public.
The incident unfolded amid a larger protest at Jantar Mantar on Oct. 3, where activists demanded the resignation of Election Commissioner Gyanesh Kumar over alleged irregularities in the election process. Three women journalists have reported sexual harassment by police during that march, and Delhi Police has transferred their complaints to the Crime Branch for investigation. Police officials claim some protesters attacked officers, but they deny any wrongdoing.
Bora was released from Narela Industrial Area police station later that day, reportedly without her phone and bag. Delhi Police has rejected the allegations as baseless, stating the officers were responding to an alleged assault. The protest movement, backed by a coalition of left-wing parties, is expected to continue demanding accountability from the election commission and police forces.