New Delhi: A day after Delhi Commission for Women (DCW) chief Swati Maliwal opened up on being sexually abused by her father, she was trolled on social media where netizens and political leaders dug up an old tweet where she said she was proud of her father.
Laying her heart bare at an event in Delhi on Saturday, Maliwal shared her ordeal where she endured sexual harassment by her father. “I was sexually assaulted by my father when I was a child. My father used to hold my braid and hit my head hard against the wall. It kept bleeding. I used to hide under the bed,” she said in a video posted by news agency ANI.
However, several netizens and Opposition, referring to an old tweet where she praised her father, asked what’s the truth and whether the accusation of ‘sexual assault’ was because of the Haryana Assembly elections scheduled later this year.
Earlier in 2016, Swati Maliwal took to Twitter to praise her father. “I am the daughter of an Army man. I have been brought up in the Army. I have been taught to work for the country, to sacrifice the life for the country. I am not afraid of anything,” she tweeted, the screenshot of which has gone viral on the social media.
Tagging the DCW chief, Samajwadi Party spokesperson Rajeev Rai tweeted, “Had a lot of respect for you and that is why want to know what’s the truth.”
Sharing the screenshot of her tweet, Congress Radhika Khera wrote, “The people of Delhi are now in fear as to the hypocrites they have trusted and handed over the governance of Delhi. The lust for power and publicity is such that they can say anything about anyone. Elections are scheduled in Haryana later this year, is this why Swati and her husband have now accused their father? Expose AAP one by one!”
"In 2016, Swati Maliwal was a proud daughter of an Armyman... and in 2023, her father was a sexual assaulter. Will the real Swati Maliwal please stand up?!?!" BJP's Priti Gandhi tweeted.
Former DCW chief Barkha Shukla condemned Maliwal's accusation and said she probably has lost her mental balance. Speaking to ANI, Barkha said, "I think Swati Maliwal has lost her mental balance. That's why she talks like this. First, she made many serious allegations about her husband, after which she is now accusing her dead father. It is absolutely wrong and extremely shameful."
“In the year 2016, Swati Maliwal had said that her father is a soldier and she is proud of him. He can even give his life for the country and the same father, when he is not alive today, Swati Maliwal is talking about him. She is accusing him of physically assaulting her when he is not in this world and is dead. I request the LG sir that she should be immediately dismissed from her post because it will create a lot of trouble in the society. This is a wrong message that will affect the women and daughters of Delhi. This is a wrong notion about the relationship between father and daughter,” Barkha added.
Several netizens too trolled Maliwal for her accusations.
“Drama started as soon as the investigation of corruption started. Thousands of false cases are filed against innocent men by daughters. Then after 3 years, 5 years, 7 years of jail, they are proved to be innocent,” wrote an user.
“For own political benefits and being in limelight you people stoop so low that you have started narrating a story. Shame on you,” wrote another user.