Indian woman claims to be hit with semen-filled balloons ahead of Holi festival

A woman from Delhi, India's capital state has recently claimed that a group of unidentified men allegedly threw a "semen-filled" balloon at her ahead of the Holi festival.

Tolino Chishi, a woman studying in Delhi's Lady Shri Ram College for Women took to Instagram on 24 February to talk about the alleged incident.

"I didn't know what semen flinging was, I learnt that today. My kurti tells the tale," she said.

According to Chishi's Instagram story, she was hit with the balloons while she was in an autorickshaw.

"It dried white on my black leggings... I did not guess what it really was. Only when I returned to my hostel to hear another friend of mine talking about semen-flinging," she said.

"Not a single person in that busy market batted a single eyelid at the sight of men throwing such balloons," she said in the post.

Chishi's post soon went viral and many women come out in support of her, condemning what had happened, Hindustan Times newspaper reported.

Regarding the incident, the Delhi police said that they are trying to contact the woman to start an investigation.

The Delhi University on Monday also announced that they are undertaking an elaborate internal and external security on campus, hostels and other colleges to counter any possible threat under the garb of Holi celebrations, Firstpost website reported.

"While such incidents happen throughout the year, they peak around Holi. The students expressed their anger, frustration and disgust at such incidents. It was felt that having safe spaces around the college is a right we need to fight for strongly. We must reclaim our public spaces," the college's woman development cell said in a statement to the Times of India newspaper.

Holi, known as the "festival of colours" is celebrated with people smearing each other with colours and they drench each other in colour water. A saying during Holi, "Bura Na Mano Holi Hai", which roughly translates to "Don't be offended, it's Holi" has often been misused.

Miscreants use eggs, tomatoes and many such things to throw on people in the name of Holi.

"It's a very sexualised thing. You get touched or hit on your buttocks or your breasts," Devangana Kalita, an activist and researcher at Jawaharlal Nehru University said about the festival last year to The Guardian.