NEW DELHI: Since the lockdown came into effect, off the streets inside homes the ugly face of violence is threatening the safety of many more women caught in abusive relationships. Between March 23 to April 1, as many as 257 women have reached out to the National Commission for Women for help. Of these 13 women have registered complaints of rape and attempt to rape, 69 women sought protection from domestic violence and 77 urged the Commission to step-in to help them live a life of dignity. NCW chief Rekha Sharma has warned that since the lock down “complaints of domestic violence were increasing by the day”. However, she shared that due to the lock down fewer women were willing to report the crime to the police as they are living with abusive husbands and in-laws under one roof and fear they will be tortured further as they are restricted to the house.Sharma shared that the Commission has taken action to help the complainants in 237 of the 257 complaints registered. Maximum complaints are from UP (90), followed by Delhi (37) and 18 each from Bihar and Odisha. Of the total complaints, as many as 16 women also reached out to complain of police apathy, 15 were married women facing harassment on account of issues like dowry and 15 complaints pertain to cyber - crime.All these are online complaints and currently the only point of access during the lock down, as the Commission’s public interface at its headquarters has stopped and women are unable to seek help by appearing in person or sending complaints by post.For instance, the data from March 2-8 shows the online complaints were 116, of which 30 pertain to domestic violence and 35 related to seeking a life of dignity. Now that this online mode of complaints has seen a significant increase in numbers in categories like domestic violence during the lock down. This shows that many more women have accessed the online route and there are many more out there hoping to seek help after the lock down opens.Sharma shared that she is seeing a different kind of a concern being raised by women complainants during the lock down. “They do not want to go to the police as they fear that even if the police takes the husband away the in-laws will abuse them as they are living in the same house. Due to the lock down the women cannot even go to their parents’ house,” Sharma shared.The NCW chief cited the example of a woman from Mohali whose husband was using COVID 19 as abuse against her and asking her to leave the house. Another woman from Nainital sought the NCW chief assistance to be moved out of her abusive husband’s house to a hostel till the lock down. “This woman’s husband was beating and abusing her but she was not willing to go to the police as she feared what if the police released him and he returned home, he would beat her again. Her parents live in Delhi and she cannot reach them in these circumstances,” Sharma cited as another example of suffering.