Signed by 77 women lawyers, a letter petition has been sent to the Chief Justice of India (CJI) NV Ramana, to take cognizance of the ‘Bulli Bai‘– a GitHub App targeting hundreds of Muslim women.
Nearly six months after the ‘Sulli Deals‘ where photographs of more than 80 Muslim women put up for sale by right-wing Hindus, asserting anti-Muslim hatred and selective sexism, photos of hundreds of Muslim women were uploaded by an unidentified group on an App using GitHub – by the name of ‘Bulli Bai’ – on 1 January 2022. Following several complaints and huge outrage, four upper-caste Hindus were arrested so far in Bulli Bai case.
“We appeal to the Hon’ble CJI and his companion Hon’ble Judges to treat our letter and the articles attached herein, as a letter petition, highlighting the failure of the law enforcement agencies Central and State Governments to secure to the Minority Communities in India, their Fundamental Right to life with Dignity and Safety guaranteed by Article 21 of the Constitution of India and to put in place preventive guidelines to ensure accountability of law enforcement agencies and for PREVENTIVE actions so that these incidents never occur again,” read the letter signed by 77 lawyers of the Delhi High Court Women Lawyers Forum (DHCWLF).
Especially in the backdrop of public calls of the genocide of the Muslim community, these Apps like Sulli Deals have created a sense of extreme insecurity among Muslim women in India, the lawyers said.
“We believe that the “Bulli Deals” App happened because no one was punished for Sulli Deals. Although FIRs had been previously registered in the matter of Sulli Deals, no one was arrested and the investigation has been a non-starter, in the same,” the letter said.
The lawyers also requested that the Supreme Court of India should monitor the criminal investigation being conducted by Mumbai Police and ensure that the probe is carried out into the Sulli Deals and Bulli Bai App incidences including an investigation into the sources of funding and/or handlers of the persons who set up Sulli Bai and Bulli Bai Apps, money trail that financed the App; and – identifying the master minds behind the surveillance of Muslim women auctioned vide the App.
The petition also sought appropriate directions to DM/ SP of every district for preventing the vilification of minorities, spread of fake news about them, and calls for genocide against minority communities.
