Like several women journalists, Rana Ayyub has also had her share of online harassment. However, things reached the lowest ebb when parents and relatives recently received a porn video with her face morphed on it.
In an interview with The Quint, Rana spoke about the incessant trolls and abuses that she comes across on social media on daily basis. The journalist said that abuses and rape threats on social media have become a common thing for her.
But the most shocking part of the ordeal came when she came across a porn video with her face morphed on it. Narrating the incident, Rana revealed how disturbing it was for her to handle it when the video reached mobile phones of her parents, relatives and even next door neighbours.
"And then you watch a porn video with your image morphed on it on every phone. When that video reaches your parents, relatives, neighbours on their phones, your life is made a living hell. So, don't even think about calling it a virtual thing. It is a personal affair, it gets into your life, it leads to nervous breakdowns, it lands you in hospital. How can it be virtual?" Rana told the publication.
"My trolling is very predictable and it has not changed in the last 10 years. I am called everything from Jihaadi Jane to a sex slave, almost everything that has my religion and religious identity linked to it. I wake up to being called an anti-Indian with expletives, rape threats. The most predictable one is to ask me to leave the country and go to Pakistan. Calling me a sold-out woman, a prostitute, a slut who sells her journalism for money. I mean, this is routine for me," she added.
Rana said that she tried to file a police complaint against the people who uploaded the clip. However, the police haven't taken any action even after she provided all the evidence.
