Patna: Rhea Paswan, known as the “Pad Girl” from Bihar, has accused Patna Police of beating her and damaging her house during a late-night raid. Rhea, who recently met Congress leader Rahul Gandhi at a women’s event in Gaya, said that around 2am on Tuesday, about eight policemen — only one of them a woman — entered her house in Kamala Nehru Nagar without warning.
She said the police beat her, tore her clothes, and dragged her brother out of the house. “They even hit pregnant women and threatened our neighbours not to record anything. Everyone was scared and no one helped,” she said. Rhea believes this happened because she had earlier complained to the SP and DM about rising crime in the area and had requested CCTV cameras to be installed.
Rhea lives in a slum area and says she speaks up against issues like drug abuse, child kidnapping, and rape. “Because I raise my voice, I get threats. And now this happened,” she said. She added that the police do not want cameras because it will stop them from taking bribes.
However, the Kotwali police station gave a different version. They said that they, along with Danapur police, went to Rhea’s area to arrest someone involved in a kidnapping case. But when they did not find the accused, people there misbehaved with the police. A case has been filed against those who stopped the police from doing their job.
Rhea first came into the spotlight in 2022 when she asked an IAS officer about free sanitary pads during a government event. The officer’s rude reply made headlines, and Rhea was praised for standing up. Since then, she has been active in social work. She recently told Rahul Gandhi that she wants to enter politics and does not plan to marry so she can continue helping society.
