Teenage girl mastermind behind Indian hate app targeting Muslim women

• Indian police apprehend creator of controversial Muslim women auction app 'Bulli Bai' in Uttarkhand.
• Several members of the gang turned off their cellphones as soon as the investigation into the case began, Indian police say.
  
• Shweta Singh, an 18-year-old resident of Adarsh Colony in Rudrapur, is a mastermind behind the hate app.
  

The creator of the controversial app 'Bulli Bai', which put up Muslim women for 'auction', has been apprehended in Uttarkhand, India, Indian media reported on Wednesday.

According to media reports, several members of the gang turned off their cellphones as soon as the investigation into the case began, but Shweta Singh, an 18-year-old resident of Adarsh Colony in Rudrapur, had her phone turned on, which helped Mumbai Police trackher down and arrest her.

Investigations have revealed that the app was being used by educated Indian youths from various Indianstates, including Delhi, Maharashtra and Bangalore.

Police are now searching for them.

In the case, Mumbai police have detained a third suspect named Mianak, whereas, Vishal Jha, a 21-year-old Bangalore engineering student, has already been apprehended.

Investigation revealed that app mastermind Shweta was running a fake Twitter account with the handleJattKhalsa07.

Early investigations have revealed that Shweta's older sister has graduated with a degree in commerce, while Shweta was studying for an engineering entrance exam.

Her Twitter account was being used to share nasty messages, photos, and comments. Indian youth who share similar ideologies were part of her app and hate campaign against Muslim women on social media.

It is pertinent to note that photographs of around 100 Muslim women, including notable actress Shabana Azami, the wife of a sitting Delhi High Court judge, as well as journalists, activists, and politicians, were posted on the app. The women were put up for auction as "Bulli Bai" of the day.

The perpetrators did not even spare Pakistani Nobel Laureate and rights activist Malala Yousafzai.

"Bulli Bai" was the second such attempt in less than a year, following "Sulli Deals" in July, in which almost 80 Muslim women have been put up "for sale" in what is being seen as a particularly noxious and misogynistic attempt to target minority communities in India.