On April 30, 26-year-old Sana, a sex worker, was standing on Omalur Main Road in Salem, when the local inspector of police approached her. As a trans woman, Sana was no stranger to occasional harassment from the cops in the area. However, what followed next was brutality that brought the entire street to a standstill.

A video of the incident which has gone viral shows Sana lying in the middle of the street as inspector Shaktivel beats her with a lathi. Two other policemen were with him at the spot and when Sana tries to escape, she is dragged back by her leg. In the video that has been put up on TikTok, Sana details the assault she went through.

"In the past, too, he has approached trans persons on the road, asked us for the “rate” and has slapped us," alleges Sana. Sana says that she was arrested by the police in a theft case 20 days ago and is out on bail.

"They can come to question us but why assault me? He beat me black and blue, hitting me on my back, hand and legs. He even kicked my private parts. But the worst thing was, he tried to force me to get into an autorickshaw. If he wanted to arrest me, why not bring a police vehicle?" she asks.

Sana managed to escape the assault and get back home. Her friends then took her to the Salem government hospital for treatment. While she spent five days recovering in the hospital, Babumohan, an activist, saw the video of her assault and approached Sana. Babumohan says that they then approached the police to lodge a complaint.

"After getting the details of the case, we went to the Police Commissioner but he questioned us as to why trans people were standing near the bus stop on the main road. Another police officer then took down our complaint and promised action," says Babumohan.

"While they have questioned Sana, no action has been taken against the inspector. We even went to the Collector and wrote to the Chief Minister's cell. However, not even an FIR has been filed," Babumohan adds.