A recent incident involving an Indian woman named Avlani, in the United States, who got caught shoplifting, has triggered significant online discussions.
The video footage of her arrest went viral and captured attention all across Indian social media platforms. While the details here have been initially scarce, the fallout of the incident did move beyond the individual act, drawing sharp reactions from netizens, tapping into broader conversations about gender and law enforcement.
Many Indian netizens are now using the case and calling for strict legal consequences for such offenses in India, too.
Indian netizens demand strict US-style laws against crimes against Women
Indian social media has erupted following the spread of the video. There are many users who contrast the immediate legal consequences faced by women in the United States, and the perceptions of leniency, specifically towards Indian women, in their own justice framework.
Comments are now flooding platforms, arguing that Indian laws must not shield women from similar accountability, like they have been doing for long.
A viral comment read, “Indian laws will protect women like you, but not other countries.They are called developed countries for a reason.”
There were many who echoed this sentiment and suggested that gender-based legal protections in the Indian justice system enable consequences evasion.
“Women victim card is real in india,” read another typical response made on a YouTube video.
The dominant online narrative has become a call for India to adopt a US-style stricter enforcement, where the legal action follows crime, irrespective of the status or the gender of the criminal. ” DISREGARD HER NATIONALITY, GENDER, OR COLOR,” demanded another user, who tried to summarize the prevalent mood of the Indian netizens on social media.
What has led to sharp reactions by Indian netizens on social media?
The entire controversy stems from the arrest of an India-based woman in May 2025. As reported, the Indian woman spent approximately. seven hours in Target Store, Illinois, selecting some items that were valued at approximately $1,000 (INR 1.1 lakh).
The security of the store observed her movements before she made an alleged attempt to exit without paying through the designated store exit. It was then that Target’s staff intervened, and they contacted the police, reporting the incident.
The bodycam footage that’s been released by authorities shows the woman pleading to the officers after she got detailed. She did reportedly offer to pay for the entire merchandise on the spot, and asked, ‘Why can’t she just pay for it?’ She even stated, ‘but I am paying for it and what is the harm?’
The officers, though, didn’t seem to be softened. They firmly declined and stated she committed a felony, as she tried to leave the payment area of the store with all unpaid goods. An officer was even heard in the video saying, ‘we are way, way, way past that,’ ignoring all pleas of the woman, who is now arrested and is facing felony charges.
The entire case has not just brought legal implications but even sparked broad conversations on legal disparities, accountability and even cultural differences within crime enforcement.
