It is a woman’s room, not a market where people can walk in and out as they wish: Shanimol Usman

Palakkad: Congress leader Shanimol Usman has slammed the police for violating her rights as a woman during the controversial raid at a hotel in Palakkad early on Wednesday. Speaking to reporters, Shanimol said she would hold the political leadership accountable for the humiliation she faced both as a woman and a public activist at the hands of the police.

She was reacting to the midnight raid conducted by the police at KPM Regency, Palakkad, where Congress leaders were staying.

“It was a serious offense on the part of the Kerala police to knock on the door of a woman’s room at midnight. There is no need to open the door if someone rings the bell after midnight. If it was an emergency, they could have called me at the reception. But that wasn’t the case. Worse, they sent a group of male police officers to my room,” Shanimol said. Later, female officers arrived at the scene to conduct the raid.

“If they had checked the room, they should have provided me with a letter confirming that nothing was found. It’s not a market where people can come and go as they please,” Shanimol added.

“As a woman, my dignity was violated by both the uniformed police and those not in uniform. If they had come following the orders of the Election Commission, they should show their identity cards before entering the room. But they were reluctant  to do so,” she said.