This year, sexual harassment and misconduct allegations rocked Hollywood and later spread worldwide with the #MeToo campaign. Many activists, women, and allies came out to address these issues all over the world, including those from the South Asian region. However, when a 17-year-old Indian actor of Kashmiri origin filed charges of sexual misconduct and molestation, many netizens supported the accused instead of the victim. In addition, the local press — and international media outlets such as the BBC — added to the damage by revealing her identity, this despite laws protecting the ‘names of victims who are minors’. The incident occurred on 9 December 2017 as the actor was traveling on a domestic airline from New Delhi to Mumbai. She later took to Instagram to speak about the assault and was visibly shaken by the experience. She explained how a middle-aged man kept harassing her during the flight and later filed a case under section 354 of Indian Penal Code and Protection of Children from Sexual Offences Act 2012. Here's what the actor said in her Instagram post: “The lights were dimmed, so it was even worse. It continued for another five to ten minutes and then I was sure of it. He kept nudging my shoulder and continued to move his foot up and down my back and neck. This is not done, I am disturbed… Is this how you're going to take care of girls? This is not the way anybody should be made to feel. This is terrible!. No one will help us if we don't decide to help ourselves. And this is the worst thing.” Relevant authorities stepped in and expressed shock over the incident. Delhi Commission of Women issues notice to Vistara Airlines on actress Zaira Wasim's allegations of a molestation attempt on Delhi-Mumbai flight, seeks report of the incident by Dec 16 — ANI (@ANI) December 10, 2017 As the story surfaced and spread on online platforms, many were outraged at her ordeal. But others questioned the actor, criticised her claims and even ran a trolling campaign against her. Comedian Hoozaay said: Don't bother reading social media replies to the News about what happened with #ZairaWasim . Publicity stunt, why not calling Police etc etc As usual, pure heartless Garbage. And people wonder why women don't speak up more often. — José Covaco (@HoeZaay) December 10, 2017 Many others questioned the young actor: Dear Women, Internet or media are not law-enforcement agencies. If you face an assault, report it to the police or the women commission. If you don’t get help, you can always seek public support through internet or media. Don’t use internet to hurt an innocent.#ZairaWasim — Sonam Mahajan (@AsYouNotWish) December 12, 2017 Another former journalist Jagrati Shukla, known for her anti-Muslim and anti-Dalit rhetoric said: 3/3 It's wrong to shame the man accused of molestation by #ZairaWasim without hearing his side of the story She & her mother think crying @instagram instead of taking action makes sense.I think that's a publicity stunt If Molestation did occur, why hasn't she filed an FIR yet? — Jagrati Shukla (@JagratiShukla29) December 10, 2017 However, others took to the actor's defense and criticised the backlash she received from the online community. Here's how film director Gautam Benegal explained the entire situation in a Facebook post: The default setting traditionally in patriarchy is to point fingers at the woman first. The French even had a term for it. “Cherchez la femme!” Look for the woman. After the advent of feminism, there has been a huge backlash from resentful patriarchy (and that includes women too since they are embedded in the system) and it has become the fashion to rail against political correctness and revert to the default. The fact that the actor hails from the disputed region of Indian-administered Kashmir has made matters worse with many bringing politics into their criticism of her claims. Muslim-majority Kashmir is geographically divided between India and Pakistan and claimed in entirety by both. Separatist politicians, rebels, and alliances like the All Parties Hurriyat Conference reject India’s sovereignty over Kashmir and have been fighting for independence or a merger with Pakistan since 1989. Due to stereotyping of all Kashmiris by Indian nationalists as troublemakers and secessionist, many Kashmiris do not feel and have never felt, included in India and its rhetoric of democracy, secularism, and globalization. The issue has intensified over the weeks with the actor gaining criticism from people on both sides of this political debate. Numerous activists joined in, putting forth their political viewpoints and affiliations in their commentary on the situation.