Dragged, Shouted At, Thrown Into Van: CCTV Exposes Brutality on Elderly Women in Surat

Surat: In a shocking incident from the Adajan area, an employee of a beggars’ shelter was removed from duty after CCTV footage showed her brutally mistreating two elderly women during an official rescue drive.

The incident occurred on December 15 outside Shri Mahakaleshwar Mahadev Sainath Pavandham Shanidev Temple during an operation under the Bhikshuk Mukt Abhiyan. The Bhikshuk Gruh team, accompanied by Adajan police, had gone to rescue beggars as part of the administration’s drive to make the city beggar-free.

CCTV visuals that later went viral showed Divya Sonavane, a female employee of the beggars’ home, dragging a disabled elderly woman towards a police van, pushing her forcefully inside. She was also seen shouting at another elderly woman, pulling her clothes and dragging her along the road.

Following public outrage, the officer in charge of the beggars’ home, Jignesh Chaudhary, issued a 24-hour show-cause notice to Sonavane. As no satisfactory explanation was received and the violence was clearly evident in the footage, the administration ordered her immediate removal from duty.

The action has been cited as a strong message that inhumane conduct will not be tolerated in government-led welfare operations.