The app, created on 1 January, has caused outrage over the nation for displaying more than 100 Muslim women ‘for sale’
Image used for representational purposes only. AFP
The Bulli Bai app row snowballed further on Monday after the Mumbai Police detained a 21-year-old engineering student from Bengaluru.
Additionally, more voices came forward against the dodgy app that targeted Muslim women in the country, with veteran screenwriter Javed Akhtar, saying he was “appalled” with everyone’s silence, including Prime Minister Narendra Modi and his own, over the harassment of Muslim women, whose doctored pictures were put online for auction in this latest incident.
The new app, named “Bulli Bai”, reportedly works in a similar way as “Sulli Deals”. Muslim women with a number of followers on Twitter have been targeted on both the apps, which were uploaded on repository hosting service GitHub.
21-year-old detained
News agency PTI reported that a 21-year-old engineering student was held in Bengaluru in a raid by a Mumbai Police team in connection with the ‘Bulli Bai’ controversy.
It has been reported that the second-year student of civil engineering was brought to Mumbai after he was detained.
According to News Minute, a senior IPS officer was quoted as saying: “The 21-year-old is a second-year civil engineering student. He used his Twitter handle to share derogatory content from the Bulli Bai app. We have detained him.”
The officer also added that the student was traced through the IP address of the Twitter accounts that were used to upload the pictures.
The cops are now trying to ascertain if he was involved in developing the app or was a part of a larger gang.
Maharashtra’s minister of state for home and information technology Satej Patil confirmed the development, however, he refused to go into the details. “The Mumbai Police has got a breakthrough. Though we cannot disclose the details at this moment as it may hamper the ongoing investigation, I would like to assure all the victims that we are proactively chasing the culprits and they will face the law very soon.”
Mumbai Police’s action came after a case was registered against the developers of the app on 1 January under sections 354-D (stalking of women), 500 (Punishment for defamation) of the Indian Penal Code (IPC) and other sections of the Information Technology Act.
Delhi Police questions Twitter
Earlier, the Delhi Police had sought information from Twitter about the account that first tweeted about the ‘Bulli Bai’ app.
Police has also sought information from GitHub platform about the ‘Bulli Bai’ app developer.
Cops jumped into action after a female journalist filed a case when her photo was uploaded on the website to target her.
Outrage over the app
The app has drawn widespread outrage from social media users, as well as in political circles.
Hundreds of Muslim women were listed for “auction” on the ‘Bulli Bai’ mobile application with photographs sourced without permission and doctored. It has happened for the second time in less than a year. The app appeared to be a clone of Sulli Deals which triggered a similar row last year.
In July, an app called “Sulli deals” had posted hundreds of images of Muslim women for “online auction”. “Sulli” is a derogatory term used to refer to Muslim women.
Terming the matter “serious”, Delhi Minorities Commission issued a notice to city police chief Rakesh Asthana seeking an action-taken report on 10 January. It said the interests of Muslim women need to be safeguarded by nabbing the culprits.
The Delhi Commission for Women (DCW) has also asked police officials to appear before it later this week.
Political leaders too condemned the harassment of Muslim women through the app.
Senior Congress leader Mallikarjun Kharge said: “Strongly condemn this disgusting harassment of Muslim women. This is the result of repeated dehumanisation of minorities by the BJP leadership.”
“Why were previous instances of similar harassment ignored? I hope this time, the strongest action against the guilty will be taken,” he added.
Congress chief spokesperson Randeep Surjewala alleged the BJP government has abdicated its constitutional and legal responsibility in acting against those lumpen elements and criminals, who are trying to tarnish the modesty of women.
“Can India’s women be divided now or looked at from the prism of their religion or caste or region or colour of their skin or the kind of clothes they wear,” he posed.
BJP leader and Union minister Mukhtar Abbas Naqvi accursed those behind the app and said any “cyber criminal communal conspiracy” against the country’s composite culture will not succeed.
Interacting with reporters, Naqvi, who is the Union Minister for Minority Affairs, noted the government has been acting in the matter and said such targeting of women is unacceptable.
Madhya Pradesh home minister Narottam Mishra and said action will be taken against developers of the app if a complaint is received against it.
Information and Technology minister Ashwini Vaishnaw had said on Sunday that the government is working with police in Delhi and Mumbai, where cases have been registered in the matter.
He also said that GitHub has blocked the user who had uploaded the app and that the Computer Emergency Response Team (CERT), the country’s nodal agency on cyber security, and police are coordinating further action in the matter.
With inputs from PTI
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