1
If you are in immediate physical danger
🚨 Call 112 immediately if you are being harmed or are in fear for your life right now.
- Call 112 — Works from any phone, even without SIM balance. Police, fire, ambulance.
- Call 181 — Women's Helpline. Officers can dispatch police and connect you to a shelter.
- If you cannot speak, text your exact address to someone trusted and ask them to call police.
- Keep children with you or send them to a safe neighbour first.
✅ You do not need to explain your full situation. Just give your address and say "I need help immediately."
2
Preserve evidence — before anything else
🚨 Do NOT delete messages or photos yet. You need them for an FIR and Protection Order.
- Screenshot threatening messages with the sender's name and date/time visible.
- Photograph visible injuries with a timestamp.
- Write down dates, what was said, and any witnesses while memory is fresh.
- Save copies to a private Google Drive or iCloud account the abuser cannot access.
3
Get to a safe location
- Call 181 — they can arrange transport to a free government shelter home (Swadhar Greh).
- A neighbour, local temple/mosque, or a police station are immediate safe options.
- Take: Aadhaar, phone + charger, cash, medicines, and children's documents.
✅ Under PWDVA 2005, you have the right to remain in your matrimonial home. Police cannot remove you without a court order.
4
File a complaint — Zero FIR or DV Act
- Zero FIR: File at any police station in India — regardless of where the abuse happened. The station must accept it. Say: "Main Zero FIR darz karna chahti hoon."
- PWDVA 2005 complaint: File with the Protection Officer (accessible via 181 or district court). Faster than criminal proceedings and grants you a Residence Order.
- Online: For digital threats, file at cybercrime.gov.in or call 1930.
⚠️ If police refuse to file an FIR (which is illegal), escalate to the District SP, or file online at cybercrime.gov.in.
5
Tell one trusted person
- Choose one person — a sister, friend, teacher — and tell them you need help.
- "I am in an unsafe situation and I need support" is enough to say.
- If you cannot tell anyone, call 181 — counsellors are confidential and trained for this.
✅ iCall (TISS) — 9152987821 — Free mental health counselling, Mon–Sat 10am–8pm.
💜 What you might be feeling right now
- Shame or self-blame: Abuse is never the victim's fault. The abuser made the choice to harm you.
- Fear of not being believed: Document everything. Your experience is real and it matters.
- Grief for the relationship: It is possible to love someone and still need to leave for your safety.
- Pressure from family to stay: Your safety comes before social appearances. Call 181 — they can also counsel your family members.
- Worry about children: Courts grant interim custody to mothers in DV cases. Leaving does not mean losing your children.
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Emergency contacts