Second video of sisters beating man in park raises questions about India's 'bravehearts'

Indian sisters Pooja (left), 19, and Aarti, 22, are photographed at their home in the district of Sonepat on Dec 1, 2014. Two Indian sisters were showered with praise and cash on Dec 1 after a video of them thrashing three alleged molesters on a movi
Indian sisters Pooja (left), 19, and Aarti, 22, are photographed at their home in the district of Sonepat on Dec 1, 2014. Two Indian sisters were showered with praise and cash on Dec 1 after a video of them thrashing three alleged molesters on a moving bus was widely replayed. Now, another video has surfaced allegedly showing them atacking a man in a park. -- PHOTO: AFP

NEW DELHI (AFP) - Two Indian sisters hailed as "bravehearts" after a video showing them fighting off three alleged molesters went viral, are now facing questions from social media users following the release of a second video Tuesday.

A day after the sisters were showered with praise - and cash - for a video showing them trashing three men who allegedly harassed them on a bus, another video of them beating a man in a park has surfaced.

The latest video has led to a flurry of criticism on the social media with many questioning whether the girls really were fighting back against harassment.

"Same Rohtak girls beating a different set of guys. Beating recorded but no eve teasing recorded," Surya Bharadwaj posted on Twitter.

The sister-duo is seen repeatedly slapping, kicking and pulling a man by his shirt in the latest video, reportedly shot at a public park in Rohtak city, less than three hours from New Delhi.

The girls said that the incident happened in October after the man verbally harassed them.

"Everyone has been calling us bravehearts. Did they think that our protest against harassment was only against one set of men (on the bus)," Pooja Kumar, 19, younger of the two-sisters, told NDTV news network after the latest video became public.

"We have always been forceful against harassment by men. No matter when or where it has happened, we have never let men get away with it," she said.

However, people on the social media were not entirely convinced.

"New versions of #RohtakSisters story says that girls wre at fault & men were just reacting in self-defense," said twitter user Miss Tiwari.

"So many different versions of #RohtakSisters Incident. So many prejudices too... Don't know what d truth is," said another user Mufflerified Prerna.

Pooja told NDTV, a news channel, that a bystander must have shot the second video.

"The video was probably shot (by the bystander) only after verbal duel between us and the man escalated (to a physical fight)," she said.

She also didn't rule out the possibility of there being more videos of them "beating up their harassers".

"We've always reacted the same way with the men who have harassed us in the past."

In the first video, Pooja and her elder sister Arti, 22, are seen using their hands and belts to retaliate against three men inside a moving bus.

The video showed other passengers in the bus merely looking on, leading to a flurry of comments on society's attitude towards sexual crimes.

The girls' actions won the widespread praise, including rewards from the local state government for what it described as "an act of bravery".

The three alleged molesters in the bus video were arrested late Sunday night after mobile phone footage, reportedly shot by a pregnant fellow passenger, was uploaded on the social media and replayed on India's many 24-hour news channels.

The local police say they are investigating the incident.

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