Police

Go to the Police Station

You can approach the police station in your area, or any other police station , and file a
complaint for domestic violence. The police will file a DIR/FIR and/or direct you to
the Protection Officer of the district who will be able to help you out further.

Protection Officer

Approach the Protection Officer

To file a complaint, the Protection Officer of the district will be the first point of contact
for you. The Protection Officer will help you file a Domestic Incident Report (DIR), make
applications to the Court to get you monetary relief, protection etc. A state-by-state list
of Protection Officers is given here. If you cannot find the Protection Officer of your
area, you can reach out to NGOs, civil society organizations and service providers who
will put you in touch with one.

National and State Commissions for Women

Approach the National/State Commission for Women

National Commission for Women (NCW) is a national-level government organization

that is empowered to investigate complaints related to issues faced by women, such as
domestic violence, dowry harassment, rape, etc. The NCW will help you by:

 Monitoring and expediting the investigations being led by the police.

 Providing counselling or a hearing before the NCW, so that the dispute can be
resolved between the two parties.
 Constituting an Inquiry Committee which makes spot inquiries, examines
witnesses, collects evidence and submits the report with recommendations
regarding the domestic violence.

You can get in touch with them by either calling the helpline number 1091, or sending
an email to ncw@nic.in or filing an online complaint. As the NCW is located in New
Delhi, you can approach the State Commission of Women situated in your state, and
ask them for help.

Some states provide handbooks for ASHA workers where you can find more information
on forms on violence, where it can happen and how to file a complaint to seek
protection against domestic violence. For example, see this handbook published for
ASHA in Chattisgarh, Delhi, Jharkhand, Madhya Pradesh and Uttarakhand.