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Members of Women’s and Transgender Organisations Joint Action Committee condemned the sustained online harassment, online maltreatment utilizing deepfakes and media vilification of Telugu histrion Anasuya Bharadwaj, demanding strict ineligible enactment against those liable and accountability from tv and integer platforms that amplified the attacks.
Addressing a property league astatine the Somajiguda Press Club successful Hyderabad connected Tuesday (January 13, 2026), the Committee said the contention surrounding women’s covering had been weaponised to warrant harassment, motivation policing and cyber maltreatment against women successful the nationalist eye. The representatives said the ongoing debates connected tv channels, YouTube platforms and societal media had normalised misogyny, emboldened abusers and shifted the absorption distant from accountability for crimes against women.
Referring to caller incidents involving actors Nidhhi Agerwal and Anasuya Bharadwaj, the Committee said comments made by a Telugu histrion astir women’s clothing had triggered a rhythm of trolling, maltreatment and threats. They stressed that specified incidents were not astir however women formal but astir however nine excuses antheral behaviour by placing the load of unit connected women.
Swetha Varma, a biker and activists cited information from the National Crime Records Bureau to underline the larger discourse of unit against women, stating that India recorded 4.28 lakh crimes against women successful 2021, 4.45 lakh cases successful 2022 and 4.5 lakh cases successful 2023. She said that alternatively of addressing this alarming rise, nationalist sermon was being diverted towards policing women’s attire. She criticised women successful influential positions who echo specified views, stating that nary pistillate had the close to marque derogatory remarks astir different woman. She besides questioned claims made successful the sanction of Indian culture, asking whether those invoking civilization were adhering to the Constitution, which guarantees women the close to dignity, state of look and beingness without fear.
Another representative, Sravya, an histrion and performer, said the repeated attacks revealed a profoundly entrenched cognition towards women. She said it was distressing that adjacent arsenic the state entered 2026, determination was a request for nationalist discussions to support women’s autonomy. As much women asserted their independency and choices, she said, the backlash had grown much aggressive. She rejected the statement that men ‘cannot power themselves’, stating that specified claims demean men by portraying them arsenic lacking basal self-restraint. Culture, she said, was not static but perpetually evolving, shaped by however radical take to unrecorded and dainty 1 another. She urged young radical of each genders to basal successful solidarity, adjacent successful tiny numbers, and to telephone retired misogynistic behaviour arsenic unacceptable.
The committee members besides criticised the code and contented of tv debates and online programmes. “We’re appalled by the incessant debates connected TV and YouTube channels, spreading misogynistic and sarcastic rhetoric against women’s choices and freedom. Such channels prioritize profits implicit people’s well-being, which has a devastating impact. Creating contented that mocks, shames, and ridicules women’s autonomy for TRPs is irresponsible and cruel. It normalises the conception that women’s bodies are nationalist property, up for treatment and dissection. It silences women, making them consciousness ashamed of their choices and acrophobic to talk out. It perpetuates a civilization of toxicity and hate.” the practice said.
The representatives demanded action against Telugu histrion Sivaji for remarks made against Nidhhi Agerwal and Anasuya Bharadwaj, calling connected the Women’s Commission to instrumentality stringent steps and guarantee prosecution. They besides warned that ineligible enactment should not beryllium constricted to the archetypal talker unsocial but widen to those who amplified the remarks by laughing, commenting and circulating the contented further. “Those engaging with and spreading specified derogatory worldly should beryllium alert that the instrumentality would besides use to them,” said a representative.
Anasuya Bharadwaj, who joined the gathering virtually, accused sections of the media of distorting her statements and turning her into a quality for nationalist consumption. She questioned journalists and media platforms connected their responsibility, saying that portion the archetypal remarks were made by an individual, the mode successful which the media presented the contented had aggravated the maltreatment against her. Ms. Anasuy Bharadwaj said she felt acrophobic to look the media and asked whether determination was immoderate consciousness of shame successful however the contented had been handled.
The histrion said she had endured online harassment for the past 2 years but decided to talk up this clip arsenic the maltreatment had crossed a idiosyncratic threshold. She said the concern escalated to threats of carnal attacks connected her and her household members, leaving her with nary prime but to question enactment and protection.
The Committee said it stood firmly with Ms. Anasuya Bharadwaj and each women facing harassment successful caller times. It planned to constitute to the Ministry of Information and Broadcasting, seeking notices to beryllium issued to those progressive successful the instauration and transmission of contented linked to the harassment.
