Serious Allegations of Sexual Assault and Abuse Against Independent Journalist, Omar Rashid calls it 'Malicious & Fake'

New Delhi-  A woman has come forward with grave allegations against Omar Rashid, an independent journalist associated with The Wire, accusing him of rape, sexual assault, physical and mental abuse, and coercive behavior, including forcing her to consume beef against her cultural and personal beliefs. The allegations, detailed in a viral social media post, have sparked widespread attention and debate, reigniting discussions about workplace power dynamics and intimate partner violence.

In a detailed and emotionally charged post, the woman, whose identity remains undisclosed, described a prolonged period of abuse at the hands of Rashid, whom she met through social media. She alleges that Rashid, leveraging his influence as a seasoned journalist in Delhi’s progressive media circles, manipulated her into a relationship under the guise of shared political ideals and mutual respect. The relationship, she claims, quickly devolved into a pattern of extreme violence and humiliation.

"I am crying as I write this and my hands are trembling, as I relive every detail of those horryfying days and nights with Omar. But after internalising immense guilt and shame, and understanding that another woman has lived and might be living through this as I am writing this, I want to put out the most shameful and crass details of the hell that he put me through", she wrote.

According to the post, Rashid subjected her to repeated physical and sexual assaults, including non-consensual acts that left her physically injured, requiring medical attention for issues such as sexually transmitted infections and abortions.

"Numerous times that I was forced into sex, I was chronically unwell and unwilling. At those times, Omar would then force me to beg him for forgiveness, while he laughed and ate in front of me like nothing had happened. This happened while he kept chatting with other women on his phone. On all the occassions, he refused to use a condom to assert his power over me. I had to deal with being forcefully impregnated at all occassions, and I kept visiting the gyenac secretly- because he would not allow me to seek treatment. Apart from pregnancy scares, because he was constantly cheating on me (sleeping with other women since we were not in a relationship), I always lived in a fear of getting STDs. I had rashes and yeast infections, and hormonal imbalances caused by regularly taking i-pills. As stated before, I had to seek medical help secretively, since I was made to believe by Omar that I was hysterical in all my pregnancy and STD scares," she stated in the post.

She described being beaten, slapped, kicked, and nearly choked, with one particularly harrowing account of hiding in a bathroom to escape his violent advances. The woman also alleges that Rashid recorded her during moments of distress, portraying her as “hysterical” to further degrade her.

Among the most disturbing claims is that Rashid forced her to consume beef, fully aware of her Hindu background and personal aversion to it, as a “test of secularism.”

"He used to regularly force me to consume beef- as some weird test of secularism. I used to puke every time I was forced into it, and he derived a sadistic pleasure out of that the same way in which he derived pleasure from seeing me beg on his feet, so that he does not describe the imagery of he having sex with my mother. He also used to make me imagine having sex with my male friends and colleagues- especially the older ones. It was more traumatising because those men were the age of my grandfather", the post read.

The woman further accused him of destroying her personal belongings, including sentimental items gifted by her family and friends, knowing her financial struggles, as a means of exerting power over her.

The accuser also highlighted Rashid’s pattern of manipulation, alleging that he used his public image as a progressive, empathetic journalist—cultivated through social media posts about being a pet lover, foodie, and advocate for progressive politics—to lure women into relationships. She claims to have learned from other women that Rashid employed similar tactics, including inviting them for walks in Lodhi Garden, a pattern she believes indicates serial abusive behavior.

The Role of Identity and Silence

The woman emphasized that Rashid frequently referenced her “non-Muslim” identity and his own Kashmiri Muslim background, framing their relationship as something to be kept secret to avoid being labeled as “love jihad”—a term used to describe alleged systematic targeting of non-Muslim women by Muslim men.

She stated that this narrative, coupled with her fear of fueling communal tensions, kept her silent for a long time. However, upon learning that other women may have experienced similar abuse, she decided to speak out, framing her story as a #WeToo movement rather than a singular #MeToo case, to highlight the broader pattern of abuse.

"Omar always kept reminding me of my identity as a "non-muslim" in the hindu rashtra, and how this relation needed to be kept secret for the greater good of the muslim men, and the idea of this being seen as love jihad. This was what made me keep quiet for the longest time, since I knew the hindutva brigade's possible reaction to it. However, I recently got to know that there are more women than me-that it makes it a #WeToo, not really a #MeToo."

Importantly, the accuser urged that her story not be reduced to a communal or ethnic issue, emphasizing that her focus is on holding Rashid accountable as an individual for his actions, not as a representative of any community. " I want to make this clear that this is not to be seen as a communal or ethnic issue- what Omar kept repeating throughout by proclaiming his kashmiri muslim identity, but rather an account of one person who chose to weaponise all of this to get sadistic pleasure out of this by tormenting young progessive women, while guilt-tripping them into silence because they would play into the hindutva hands by calling him out."

The Wire’s Response

The Wire, where Rashid has been contributing as an independent journalist for the past couple of years, issued a statement on May 21, acknowledging the allegations.

The statement, posted on X, reads: “The Wire has taken serious note of the grave allegations against Mr. Omar Rashid, who has been contributing to The Wire for the past couple of years as an independent journalist. We will be conducting an inquiry as per relevant laws and procedures applicable in the matter and decide on how best to move forward to address the allegations raised in the post.”

The Mooknayak reached out to Omar Rashid to know his response on the grave allegations. Responding to the message, Omar wrote , " I'm currently under the process of taking legal action through the proper channel under law.  I shall update everyone soon after my response to the malicious and absolutely fake post about me."

As of May 23, there have been no reports of a formal police complaint or arrest in connection with these allegations. The Wire’s internal inquiry is ongoing, and it remains unclear whether the accuser intends to pursue legal action. The National Commission for Women and Delhi Police have been tagged in several social media posts calling for an investigation, but no official response from these authorities has been reported.