New Delhi: A free legal help camp was organized at Shaheen Public School, Shaheen Bagh in New Delhi on Saturday by Awaz-e-Khwateen, an NGO based in the national capital, working for women.

The camp was attended by over 250 women who were briefed about the Domestic Violence Act.

The camp was organized in collaboration with the Social Pride Welfare Society. Both the NGOs have done extensive work in the field and have glorious stories of triggering positive change in the society.

The camp aimed to sensitize the community about coming forward for help and reporting domestic violence. Awareness about the Domestic Violence Act and the legal proceedings were explained to the women at the camp by a team of legal experts.

Senior Advocate of Supreme Court Sandhya Bajaj, Advocate Momin Ahmad and Advocate Sanay Dutt also interacted with the women and gave them personal legal advice. Information about affordable resources and avenues for legal help and rehabilitation of domestic violence survivors was also provided.

The legal experts told the women that the Domestic Violence Act is in their favor and they should not tolerate any hostile behavior from the police. The women were counseled to be aware of the small nuances, as they have a big effect on the legal proceedings or the direction of the case.

“The dip in registration of domestic violence cases in 2020 was bothersome. The pandemic has exacerbated the situation, domestic violence is on a rise, but the staggering dip shows women are not coming forward. There is a direct link between times of crisis like these and interpersonal violence. Domestic violence has considerably increased during the pandemic due to financial instability, and isolation.

Delhi recorded the highest number of domestic violence cases during the nearly two-months-long lockdown period, this emphasizes the importance of awareness campaigns like these,” Awaz-e-Khwateen said.