Special Commissioner Robin Hibu of Delhi Police is known for always rushing to help people of the Northeast who find themselves in distress in the capital. Not confining himself to the boundaries of Delhi, he even lends a helping hand to northeasterners who face problems in other states also. He does this through his network of contacts, as several of his friends and colleagues are sitting in responsible administrative positions all over the country.
It can be said that Mr. Hibu’s name is as good as a northeast helpline. He receives cries for help from different corners of Delhi as well as the country, and he attends to all the distress calls and helps to the best of his capacity.
In an exclusive conversation with Indian Masterminds, the officer shared a few cases where he was able to reach help to a few women in distress just in time.
HELPING HANDS TO THE RESCUE
The 1993-batch AGMUT cadre IPS officer launched his now-famous organization called, Helping Hands, in the year 2016. The organization addresses the problems of young men and women from the northeast region suffering any form of ill-treatment at the hands of people or social media due to their race or appearance.
Not even a week into the new year, and Mr. Hibu has already helped several women from the region who were duped and left to fend for themselves in the capital city and other states.
“Since many northeastern women activists have requested me not to mention the states of the female victims, I will respect their wishes. Last week, there were several cases of northeast women facing ill-treatment in different cities, which is very worrisome and eye-opening lessons for us. I am happy we could contribute to helping them out,” Mr. Hibu told Indian Masterminds.
RESCUE MISSION FROM KERALA
A northeastern woman working as an air hostess in Indigo Airlines was in a relationship with a man who became extremely toxic within a few months into the relationship. He became abusive and inflicted harm on her, both physically and mentally.
“Thanks to Kerala Helping Hands volunteers and my batchmate IPS officer Manoj Abraham, who swiftly rescued her and sent her back by flight. When she reached home, I personally met her and she lamented her mistake of falling into a dubious honey trap of the man who even faked suicide attempts to win her over,” Mr. Hibu revealed.
The woman had lost her job, but the organization is now helping her to stand on her feet once again. She requested Mr. Hibu to share her plight so that no other girl falls into the same kind of trap.
ABANDONED BY HUSBAND
A young woman had got married to a rich businessman in Paschim Vihar, Delhi. He had wooed her using bizarre tactics like writing a love letter with his blood, chasing her for two years, and flooding her with costly gifts.
“Today she has been thrown out with her little daughter. She confided in me how she was forced to share herself with other male members of her in-law’s family. When she refused, she was humiliated, tortured, and finally kicked out without any maintenance or alimony.”
The police have now filed a case against her in-laws and a female attorney from the Helping Hands community is assisting in her case. “But she is devasted for life. It’s so painful to see her little daughter just holding the helpless, shaky hand of her abandoned mother, unaware of the cruel world she has come into,” added Mr. Hibu.
LEFT ALONG IN TIME OF NEED
Another girl who had married a young and rich man in a big, fat wedding was left alone by her husband in her time of need. After a few years, the marriage collapsed due to differences in religion, food habits, social ethos, and even dressing style. When she was diagnosed with a life-threatening ailment, her husband divorced her and left her with their two children.
“It was heart-breaking to see her all alone undergoing a major operation in Max hospital. Helping Hands somehow managed four units of blood from NE Blood Bank. Today, she is all alone, weak, hapless, and trying to rebuild her life with her two children,” Mr. Hibu said.
OTHER CASES
There are several other instances where Mr. Hibu has actively helped victims. He helped transport the body of a woman back to her village to fulfill her last wish to be buried there, as her family was going through a financial crunch and couldn’t do it.
In another instance, he helped a woman who was living together and had a secret wedding with a man who claimed to live in Dubai and was here for some work. After exploiting her for 5 years, he went back to Dubai with a promise to return but never showed up. Mr. Hibu is assisting the girl now and a lawyer has been appointed to her case.
In such big or small ways, Mr. Hibu has been helping the northeastern people living in Delhi and in other parts of the country find help when they were all alone and lost in a city, far away from their families and relatives.
