Author: Somnath Batabyal
Publication: NDTV
Date: November 29, 2002
URL: http://www.ndtv.com/template/template.asp?template=Womencrime&slug=3+arrested+for+abusing+24%2DParganas+women+&id=10729&callid=0
For two long years women in West
Bengal's North 24 Pargana's district were terrorised by a group of men
allegedly affiliated to the two main political parties in the state, the
CPI (M) and Trinamool Congress.
But it was only after the initiative
of a non-government organisation that three of them have now been arrested.
And with more women emboldened to tell their story, it appears that more
than 50 women were victimised by the group.
"I was brutally beaten. Then they
took me to the field, tore off my clothes, molested me and burnt my face
with cigarette stubs," recounts a victim.
"It was around 2.30 at night, that
they came and took my daughter away. When she came back to the house, she
was vomiting," says the victims mother.
Silent sufferers
At Sutia village stories of such
brutalities are common and the local police station has more than 30 complaints
of rape, blackmail, beatings and extortion. The victims have always been
the poor, people who had no means to protest.
And it was only after the three
gangsters-Susanta Choudhury, Prakash Dahli and Bidhan Sarkar-were arrested
in several other cases, that the women came forward to register their complaints
through a local NGO.
"Even in the mornings, they roam
around with guns. We were naturally afraid to protest against them," says
another victim.
Goons with political backing
Contrary to police denials, local
people state that the goons were hired by political parties.
The gangsters have been operating
in this area for nearly 10 years, but the police have no clear explanation
of why they were not arrested earlier.
They deny that there was any political
pressure not to take action. But with the State Women's Commission stepping
in and the Chief Minister also taking note, several arrest have now been
made.
"They targeted selected houses,
where the women had some problems with their husband or had some allegations
against them. They not only extorted money, but also beat them up. There
are three cases where rape has also been complained of," said H S Verma,
SP, North 24-Parganas.
But these accounts are just the
tip of the iceberg. Many stories go untold, with the victims unwilling
to recount the brutal stories of rape, blackmail and beatings in front
of the camera.
After remaining mute spectators
for more than a year, the police have finally initiated arrests. But for
the brutalised victims, the fear remains, the fear of being hounded again
after these men are set free.
