Find help
Government helplines and free legal aid, checked in September 2026.
Emergency
Police, ambulance and fire, all India.
Women Helpline
24 hours. Run by your state. Connects you to police, hospitals and One Stop Centres.
National Commission for Women
24 hours, also 7827170170. Complaints about violence, dowry, desertion, or police refusing to register an FIR.
Free legal aid (NALSA)
Every woman gets a free lawyer, whatever her income. Apply by phone, online, or at the legal services office in your district court.
Tele-Law
Free advice from a lawyer by phone or video, also through Common Service Centres.
Delhi legal services helpline
Panel lawyers answer. Office at Rouse Avenue District Court Complex, New Delhi. Every Delhi district court has a front office.
One Stop Centre (Sakhi)
Medical help, police, legal help, counselling and up to 5 days of shelter in one place. At least one in every district, often at the district hospital.
Women-led community mediators
Bharatiya Muslim Mahila Andolan (BMMA)
A Muslim women's rights movement. Its women-led adalats mediate marriage and mahr disputes, help with maintenance, and counsel survivors of violence.
Bandra (E), Mumbai, with groups in several states
zakiasoman@gmail.com, noorjehan.sn@gmail.com
SourceDarul Uloom Niswan (women qazis trained by BMMA)
About 16 trained women qazis in Maharashtra, Madhya Pradesh, Rajasthan, Tamil Nadu, Karnataka and Odisha. They solemnise nikah, mediate, and help with khula and mahr.
Mumbai, Jaipur, Bhopal
SourceAwaaz-e-Niswaan
A Muslim women's collective since 1987. Legal help and counselling on divorce, polygamy and violence at home.
Kurla (W), Mumbai
SourceSTEPS Women's Jamaat
A women-only jamaat that helps settle family disputes, with a shelter and counselling.
Pudukkottai, Tamil Nadu
Source
Contact details are from the group's own pages. Call before you visit.