NEW DELHI: An Instagram group with the name 'Boys Locker Room' has recently come to light, raising questions about the safety and security of women and underage girls on the photo and video sharing platform.
Delhi Commission for Woman (DCW) on Monday issued notice to Instagram and Delhi Police over the issue. It said 'Bois Locker Room' is a private group on social media site Instagram with more than hundreds of members associated with it.
"It is reported that the group is used for sharing objectionable pictures of minor girls and young women along with their personal information. The members of the group have been reported to have discussed techniques of raping women and gang-raping minors," said Swati Maliwal in the notice issued.
Leaked screenshots of the private Instagram chat group have stirred up a storm over rape culture in the country after numerous boys were allegedly seen sharing photos of underage girls, objectifying them, and planning 'gang rapes'.
The commission also claimed that several other illegal acts and comments have also been made on the group. "The commission has received several screenshots of the group wherein the handle names and the usernames are clearly visible. This is a very serious matter as an open media platform is being used for illegal activities," added Maliwal.
DCW has further asked the Instagram and Delhi Cyber Police to furnish the reply by May 8.
Reacting to the #BoysLockerRoom Instagram group controversy, the Delhi Police said on Monday that they are "analysing the social media posts" and are looking deeply into the matter.
Deputy Commissioner of Police, Cyber Crime, Anish Roy said, "We have come to know about this through social media monitoring. We haven't received any complaints in this regard so far. However, we are analysing the social media posts and are looking deeply into the matter."
The incident came to light after a girl from south Delhi shared a screenshot on social media exposing the said group and scores of similar groups.