State misses molest law lead

Mamata Govt Sat On Rights Body Prod To Make Molestation Non-Bailable

Saibal Sen TNN 07.02.2013

Kolkata: The Centre has marked molestation as a non-bailable offence following the recommendations of the Justice Verma Commission but very few know that the West Bengal Human Rights Commission had mooted the proposal a year back.
    The Mamata Banerjee government had been sitting on the committee’s recommendations, missing out in the process a rare opportunity to showcase that Bengal can lead from the front in areas that really matter.
    On April 20, 2012, former Supreme Court judge and WBHRC chairman Asoke Ganguly had made the same recommendation to the Mamata Banerjee government to curb incidents of molestation in Bengal. But the government did not pay heed.
    Now, the same proposals figure in the Justice Verma Commission report and have been icorporated in the Criminal Law Amendment (Ordinance), 2013.
    Justice Ganguly’s proposals to the Mamata Banerjee government had been specific on two counts — to make molestation a non-bailable offence and increase the minimum sentence to five years with a maximum term of seven years. The proposal also sought to impress that should a court impose any lesser sentence, the reasons have to be specified in the judgment.
    “I am happy that the spirit of our proposals have found reflection in amendments,” Justice Ganguly told TOI.
    Justice Ganguly’s proposals had been based on the National Crime Records Bureau’s data till 2011, which pointed out that molestation cases in Bengal had increased almost tenfold since 1990 — from 357 cases to 3320. Earlier, Section 354 IPC (that dealt with molestation) defined the offence as a cognisable but bailable offence. The rights body chairman, while making the recommendations to the government a year ago, had cited the instances of two states — Madhya Pradesh and Odisha — that amended the IPC section and also the criminal procedure code, redefining molestation as a non-bailable offence.
    That wasn’t all. The commission chairman also felt the need to redefine rape because in some cases it is difficult to prove a rape charge in court though persons accused of molestation are convicted. The courts then had no alternative but to give minor imprisonment to the accused, leading to “social imbalance and injustice”.
    The state government didn’t set aside the recommendation but didn’t accept it either. Instead, it left the issue pending on grounds that it was “considering” the proposals. But then, it was last year.
    “It only shows how the state government is apathetic to human rights. Though the commission’s recommendations are not binding on the government, in this case it could have at least taken a lead,” Justice Ganguly said from New Delhi.
WHAT BENGAL THOUGHT LAST YEAR...
RECOMMENDATIONS OF WEST BENGAL HUMAN RIGHTS COMMISSION  

Make molestation non-bailable
Increase minimum sentence to five years and maximum to seven years
Should a court impose a lesser sentence, the reasons have to be specified in the judgment.
Need to redefine rape because in some cases it is difficult to prove a rape charge in court 

Related Stories:

How Bengal treats Rapes 

Mamta ordered Kolkata police to gag protesters over Rape incidents

Bengali intellectuals called rape victims are sluts

Rampant sexual assault in Bengal for Mamata's inefficiency

Women security is nil in West Bengal under Mamata 

Inept Governance of Mamata made West Bengal the State of Horror

Man stabbed for defending sister

Goon Attacks Victim On Main Road, But No One Responds To Cries For Help

Monotosh Chakraborty TNN 07.02.2013

Mathurapur: A 32-year-old man is fighting for his life after being stabbed repeatedly while trying to protect his sister from a molester in South 24-Parganas’ Mathurapur on Tuesday evening. The attack took place at an auto stand on the main road during peak traffic hour but no one dared challenge the molester because he is a history-sheeter who roams around freely although he us branded an absconder.
    The vicious attack brought back memories of the murder of schoolboy Rajib Das, who was stabbed to death for defending her sister from a gang of molesters in Barasat in February 2011.
    The victim of Tuesday’s molestation is a 28-year-old woman, married for three years. Her brother, a farmer, is admitted to Diamond Harbour subdivisional hospital with multiple stab wounds on his chest and back. Doctors say he is in a critical condition.
    The woman had come to visit her brother in Killa village on Tuesday and was on her way back in the evening. He accompanied her to the auto stand, as he always does, and a woman neighbour joined them for the short walk.
    Around 7pm, local rowdy Nityananda Bar was passing by when he saw her and started passing lewd remarks. The group ignored him because the locality is terrified of him. But he stepped closer and kept making filthy gestures. The others waiting at the auto stand started running away but the 28-year-old woman’s brother stood up to him.
    “This only angered Nityananda, who grabbed the young woman and started molesting her. Her brother resisted and a scuffle ensued. Suddenly Nityananda whipped out a chopper
    -
    on stabbing and kicking him even after he had collapsed on the road. She and I shouted for help but no one came forward, fearing for their lives,” said the neighbour.
    The goon left after threatening to kill anyone who went to the police. The two women took the injured farmer to Mathurapur hospital, where the doctors patched him up as best as they could and asked them to take him to Diamond Harbour Hospital because he was sinking.
    Nityananda is accused in several cases, including dacoity, gun-running, extortion and selling stolen goods.

The attack took place at an auto stand during peak traffic hour but no one dared challenge the molester because he is a history-sheeter 

 

 *********************************************

Spate of molestations makes it a horror day for city

TIMES NEWS NETWORK07.02.2013

Kolkata: The city may have hit the streets time and again to protest against attack on women, but a series of molestations on Wednesday proved that the city is yet to practice what it preaches. The recent spate of molestations established the fact that Kolkata is not at all a safe place for women, as hinted by a national survey a few months back.
    In Bonhooghly, a 36-yearold woman was harassed by a fellow passenger on a bus of route 34B on Wednesday. The accused allegedly harassed the complainant for some time. When the woman tried to protest, the youth brought out his mobile phone and tried to take her photograph. However, he was stopped by other passengers. The youth was then handed over to cops in Cossipore police station. He was later identified as Rabin Singha, a 29-year-old resident of Baranagar. According to cops, Thakur was in an inebriated state. Police initiated a case under sections 354 (criminal force) and 509 (molestation).
    In Shyambazar, a 28-yearold woman from Sovabazar Street lodged a complaint against her 27-year-old neighbour Surojit Roy. She complained that Roy had passed lewd comments and when she protested, the accused had assaulted her. Police have started a case under section 509.
    In another incident, a student of Class III was allegedly molested by one of her teachers at Tarun Tirtha Primary School. On the basis of her parents’ complaint, police have initiated a case and started interrogating the teachers of the school. This comes days after a student of a primary school in south Kolkata was molested by a mason engaged in the renovation of the school building.
    This apart, a 55-year-old man was picked from the Watgunj for allegedly molesting his own daughter. He was arrested on the basis of the complaint filed by the girl.
    According to cops, prompt action against molesters has instilled courage in victims. “They now come forward and file complaints as they believe police will punish their tormentors. Earlier, many such cases used to go unrecorded,” said a police officer.

 

 ********************************************

Teen gang-raped at Joynagar

TIMES NEWS NETWORK07.02.2013

Kolkata: As the city grimly marked the first year of the Park Street rape cases on Tuesday, about 50km away, in South 24-Parganas’ Joynagar, a Class IX girl was dragged to the side of the road, beaten up and gangraped. A boy who was escorting her home was also beaten up when he tried to protect her.
    Police have filed a case of gang rape and sent the girl for medical tests. According to the complaint, the attack took place around 7pm at Vidyarai Mor at Nimpith. Earlier in the evening, the 15-year-old girl had insisted on visiting her grandparents in Naloa, some 3km away, and her parents asked one of close friends to accompany her. They were on their way back on the boy’s bicycle when four men stopped them at a deserted area near a school in Doshora Bhagabanpur.
    The boy sensed the danger and pedaled furiously to get away, but the gang chased them down and pushed them off the cycle. Two of the goons beat the boy and held him down as the other two dragged the girl into some bushes and raped her. They returned to pin down the boy so that the other two could take turns to rape the girl, says the complaint.
    She was barely conscious when they decided to dump her where she lay and walked away. The boy, who was himself injured, brought her home. The horrified parents immediately went to Joynagar police station and lodged a complaint. All the rapists were between 20 and 22 years of age, says the victim.

 

 *********************************

Howrah girls nab molesters

TIMES NEWS NETWORK07.02.2013

Howrah: Two girls, who were harassed by three youths on Church Road on Wednesday afternoon, fought back valiantly and managed to hold on to two of their tormentors. With the help of the passers-by, the duo was handed over to police while the third managed to escape.
    The arrested youths were later identified as 19-year-old Md Nadim and 20-year-old Md Shamim.
    It is learnt that the girls, one a student of Class X and the other of Class VIII in a Hindi-medium school in Howrah, were returning home from school around 11am on Wednesday. When they reached Church Road, the youths started stalking them. Soon, the trio started passing lewd comments. Shamim then approached the Class X student and proposed her. He also tried to hand her a letter.
    However, the girl rejected his proposal and refused to take the letter. In the meantime, Shamim’s friends stopped the girls when they tried to move forward and abused them. The girl then slapped Shamim and began running. The youths too ran after them.
    Sensing trouble, the girls screamed for help. As the passers-by rushed for help, two youths started hurling stones at them while the third ran for his life. Confident of support at hand, the girls made a dash towards the youths and managed to cling on to them till the crowd reached them and nabbed the duo.
    Just then, a patrol jeep of Howrah Police’s Radio Flying Squad was passing by the area. It stopped at the spot and took away the rowdies to the police station. The girls later lodged a formal complaint at the Howrah police station.
    “The youths have been arrested on the basis of the girls’ complaint. They have been charged under section 509A of the Indian Penal Code,” said Rakesh Singh, assistant commissioner of Howrah City Police. “We are investigating the duo to nab the third culprit,” he added.

 

Incessant sexual assault on women in Bengal

জয়নগরে তরুণীকে গণধর্ষণ

রকাশ সিংহ ও রঞ্জিত হালদার, এবিপি আনন্দ
Wednesday, 06 February 2013 13:47



দিল্লি গণধর্ষণকাণ্ডের ছায়া এবার জয়নগরে৷ মঙ্গলবার রাতে নিমপীঠ এলাকায় সিআই অফিসের কাছে ৪ যুবক এক কিশোরীকে গণধর্ষণ করে বলে অভিযোগ৷ প্রতিবাদ করে প্রহৃত তাঁর বন্ধু৷

মঙ্গলবার রাতে প্রতিবেশী বন্ধুর সঙ্গে সাইকেলে চেপে মথুরাপুরের মামা বাড়ি থেকে ফিরছিল বছর পনেরোর এক কিশোরী৷ অভিযোগ, রাত আটটা নাগাদ নিমপীঠ সিআই অফিসের কাছে, ২ যুবক তাঁদের রাস্তা আটকে দাঁড়ায়৷ তারা ফোন করে আরও দুইজনকে ডেকে নেয়।এরপর কিশোরীকে সাইকেল থেকে নামিয়ে জোর করে তুলে নিয়ে যায়৷ প্রতিবাদ করলে আরও ২ যুবক এসে কিশোরীর বন্ধুকে রাস্তায় ফেলে ব্যাপক মারধর করা হয় বলে অভিযোগ৷ এরপর ওই ৪ যুবক পাশেই বাগানে কিশোরীকে গণধর্ষণ করে বলে অভিযোগ৷
অভিযুক্তরা চলে যাওয়ার পর কিশোরীকে উদ্ধার করে বাড়ি নিয়ে যায় তার বন্ধু৷
মঙ্গলবার মাঝ রাতে জয়নগর থানায় ৪জনের নামে অভিযোগ দায়ের করা হয়৷ পুলিশ গণধর্ষণের মামলা রুজু করে তদন্ত শুরু করেছে৷ নিগৃহীতার মেডিক্যাল টেস্ট করা হয়েছে৷
এক বছর পার করার পরও পার্ক স্ট্রিট গণধর্ষণকাণ্ডে তৃতীয় অভিযুক্তকে গ্রেফতার করতে পারেনি পুলিশ৷ প্রতিবাদে মঙ্গলবার পথে নামেন বিদ্বজ্জনেরা৷ এদিকে দিল্লি গণধর্ষণকাণ্ডের পর তড়িঘড়ি মহিলা সুরক্ষায় অর্ডিন্যান্সে সম্মতি দেয় কেন্দ্রীয় মন্ত্রিসভা৷ আসন্ন বাজেট অধিবেশনেই অর্ডিন্যান্সটি সংসদে পেশ হতে পারে৷ এর মধ্যেই ফের এ ধরনের ঘটনায় খাস কলকাতা থেকে জেলার প্রতন্ত এলাকায় মহিলাদের নিরাপত্তা নিয়ে প্রশ্ন উঠছে৷

মধ্যমগ্রামে ইভটিজিংয়ের শিকার তিন কিশোরী
Update: February 6, 2013 09:47 IST

• 
  

বারাসতের পর এবার মধ্যগ্রামেও ইভটিজিংয়ের ঘটনা। কয়েকজন মদ্যপ যুবকের অশালীন আচরণ ও কটূক্তির শিকার এক মহিলাসহ তিন কিশোরী। প্রতিবাদ করতে গিয়ে আক্রান্ত হলেন মহিলার স্বামী ও এক কিশোরীর মা।

সোমবার রাত এগারোটা নাগাদ এ ঘটনাটি ঘটে মধ্যমগ্রাম স্টেশনের সামনে। সোমবার রাতে সুভাষ মেলায় সাংস্কৃতিক অনুষ্ঠান শেষে ভ্যানে অভিভাবকদের সঙ্গে বাড়ি ফিরছিলেন দুই কিশোরী, এক তরুণী এবং তাদের মায়েরা। দুই কিশোরীর বাবা পিছনে সাইকেলে ছিলেন। মধ্যমগ্রাম স্টেশনের কাছে একটি মিষ্টির দোকানের সামনে মদ্যপ অবস্থায় দাঁড়িয়ে ছিল তিন যুবক।  ওই যুবকেরা তরুণীদের উদ্দেশ্যে কটূক্তি ও অশালীন ইঙ্গিত করে। প্রতিবাদ করায় মারধর করা হয় মহিলার স্বামী ও তাঁর স্ত্রীকে। পরে মধ্যমগ্রাম তদন্ত কেন্দ্র ও বারাসত থানায় অভিযোগ জানান তাঁরা। এ ঘটনায় প্রণব পাল নামে এক অভিযুক্তকে গ্রেফতার করেছে পুলিস।


চলন্ত বাসে মহিলার ‘শ্লীলতাহানি’
ময়ুখ ঠাকুর চক্রবর্তী, এবিপি আনন্দ
Wednesday, 06 February 2013 14:08

দিনেদুপুরে ভিড়ে ঠাসা বাসে এবার শ্লীলতাহানির অভিযোগ ঘিরে চাঞ্চল্য৷ বুধবার সকালে ঘটনাটি ঘটেছে কাশীপুর থানা এলাকায়৷ অভিযোগকারিণীর দাবি, এদিন সকালে কর্মস্থলে যাওয়ার জন্য বনহুগলি থেকে ৩৪বি রুটের বাস ধরেন তিনি৷ তাঁর অভিযোগ, বাসে ওঠার পর থেকেই এক মত্ত যুবক তাঁকে উত্যক্ত করতে শুরু করেন৷ চলন্ত বাসে ভিড়ের মধ্যে বারবার তাঁর গায়েও হাত দেন৷ মহিলা প্রতিবাদ করলেও কোনও লাভ হয়নি৷ কিছুক্ষণ পর ওই যুবক মোবাইল বার করে ওই মহিলার ছবি তোলেন৷ এরপরই তিনি চিত্‍কার করে প্রতিবাদ করেন৷ বাদানুবাদের পর বাসের অন্যান্য যাত্রীরা ওই মত্ত যুবককে বাস থেকে নামিয়ে কাশীপুর থানায় নিয়ে যান৷ দায়ের করা হয় এফআইআর৷
রবি সিংহ নামে ওই যুবককে গ্রেফতার করেছে পুলিশ৷ তাঁর বিরুদ্ধে ভারতীয় দণ্ডবিধির ৩৫৪ ধারায় শ্লীলতাহানির অভিযোগ দায়ের করা হয়েছে৷

Gag protest against Rape? Yes, It's Kolkata

Cops halt silent march for justice

TNN | Feb 6, 2013, 03.33 AM IST

KOLKATA: A silent rally from Mahatma Gandhi's statue at the Dufferin Road-Mayo Road intersection to Park Street police station - organized by prominent civil society individuals to protest the tardy progress in the Park Street rape case - was blocked by police following instructions from higher ups in the Mamata Banerjee administration.

Ironically, the same rallyists had been stopped at the same spot in 2007 by the then Buddhadeb Bhattacharjee government when they hit the streets to protest the Nandigram firing.

"Power corrupts. It is extremely unfortunate that political rallies with flags are allowed to disrupt the city but a silent orderly rally is stopped without police and they don't even consider it necessary to cite a reason," said artist Samir Aich as theatre personality Shaoli Mitra nodding vigorously in agreement.

"When the Nandigram firing happened, many of those who are now in government had joined us in the silent protest march that was blocked at the Kyd Street-Chowringhee intersection. The same thing has happened again, a pointer to the fact that the faces in power may have changed but attitudes and functioning haven't," said Mitra.

Unlike March 2007 though, only a handful of civil society activists turned up for the march, among them Saswati Ghosh, Miratun Nahar, Bolan Ganguly, Sunanda Sanyal, Meher Engineer, Asim Giri and Dilip Chakraborty.

State Congress president Pradip Bhattacharya and party leader Nirbed Roy joined councilor Mala Roy and local Krishna Debnath joined them along with four truck loads of Congress supporters from No. 13 Bustee and Kalia Colony Rail Bridge in Tollygunge.

"Please don't label this a rally by intellectuals. It is a citizen's rally with people the cross-section of society," said scholar Miratun Nahar, aware that the turnout was not quite what she and others had hoped despite the short web campaign.

"I had hoped more youngsters would participate. But that does not belittle the issue. A year after the Park Street rape case, there has been no justice for the victim. Not only has she been vilified by people in power, she has been ostracized in society. She has been refused tenancy and jobs. We want immediate arrest of the two prime accused who are absconding and speedy justice for the victim," said activist Saswati Ghosh.

Questioning the laxity on the part of police, Nahar wondered if it was the comment of home minister (Mamata also holds the home portfolio) that the case was a concocted one that had prompted them to go slow.

"The CM calls it 'shajano ghotona'. Her ministers cast aspersions on the victim's character and term the rape accused as 'clients'. The only police officer who dared to conduct an impartial probe is transferred. Is there a link between the rape accused and those in top echelons in the administration? How the police have dealt with this case is reflective of the government's attitude," remarked Aich.

The Park Street crossing was blocked for nearly an hour by a group of women, mobilized by Mala Roy, even as the dozen-odd intellectuals were allowed to proceed to Park Street police station and submit a memorandum.

Activist Saswati Ghosh blames the Mamata government not only for "delayed justice" in the Park Street rape case but also the victim's humiliation because of "character assassination by the chief minister and her ministers".

"It is because of the aspersions that were cast on her character and irresponsible comments that the CM and some ministers made about her that she has found it difficult to land a job or reside in a place of her choice. This is continued violation of human rights. The state must own responsibility and remedy the situation," said Ghosh.

Aich felt the government needed to extend all possible help to the victim. "It is a shame that she has to continue suffering the ordeal," he said.

How Bengal treats Rapes

Bengal lags in rape case conviction

By Dwaipayan Ghosh, TNN | Feb 5, 2013, 07.04 AM IST

NEW DELHI: West Bengal has one of the worst conviction rates in rape cases in this country - a measly 11.5%, the second lowest in the country after Andhra Pradesh whose conviction rate was just 11% in 2010-11.

This has come to the light after the Rape Map of India was published recently by a news blog run jointly by the Wall Street Journal and Dow Jones newswire.

According to the figures, verdict against 15,423 cases were given in 2011. There were convictions in 4072 cases and acquittals in 11, 351. In Bengal, there were 2363 reported cases in the same period but conviction was achieved only in 237 cases. In comparison to the national average of 26.4%, the 11.5% in Bengal is abysmally low. The same report also said in between 2009 and 2011, a total of 7,010 rape cases were registered in Bengal, but only 381 people could be convicted. Surprisingly, the state was at par with the national conviction rate of 44.28% in 1973 and 36.83% in 1983 before starting to slip in the nineties and the first decade of 21st century.

In comparison, even in Uttar Pradesh - considered to be one of the most crime-prone states - 5364 cases of rape were registered during the three year period and 3816 persons were convicted for the crime. A total of 5,052 rape cases were registered in Assam during 2009-11, but only 517 persons could be convicted. Manipur is one state which achieved 100% conviction rate in 2011, with 53 reported cases in the state. Nearly 68,000 rape cases were registered across the country during 2009-11, but only 16,000 rapists were sent to prison.

"The poor rate of conviction is primarily due to prosecution's inability to gather enough evidence against the accused following inadequate police investigation," a home ministry official said. A Kolkata Police official though said: maintained the courts, too, need to shoulder some responsibility. share part of the blame.

"Unless, we have dedicated fast track courts, the problem will remain,'' said the official who refused to be named.

The same report, though, has painted a better picture for Bengal as far as the propensity of the crime is concerned. While in Mizoram, the number of reported cases per 1, 00,000 women is as high as 14.3 and in Delhi it is 7.4, in Bengal it is 5.3, indicating the state is still comparatively safer than other cities in the country.

Sexual Assault on rampage in Bengal under Mamata

Bikers molest schoolgirl on road, beat up father

TNN | Feb 2, 2013, 01.30 AM IST

Kolkata: Bikers molest schoolgirl on road, beat up father

• 
  

BARASAT: A Class XI schoolgirl was molested by a gang of bikers in front of dozens of people at a bus-stand in Barasat'sAminpur area on Friday evening, barely 1km from a police station. The horror went on for about 20 minutes, during which the goons beat up her cousin and father when they tried to save her.

The brazen sexual attack brought back memories of the murder of a schoolboy by a band of molesters who targeted his sister in Barasat town on February 14, 2011, just 5km from where the girl was molested on Friday. Last July, a gang of 10 had molested an 18-year-old girl and beat up her father when she answered her call for help.

Like the other cases, the girl attacked on Friday, too, was being stalked for some time. Two youths — one of them later named as Md Zafaruddin — were waiting for her when she got off a bus at the Kachkal halt around 4.30pm. It was her routine on her way back from school and a relative usually came to escort her home. Zafaruddin grabbed her and pulled her towards him on Friday, say police. Her cousin, Mithu Ghosh, tried to protect her but the two bikers beat him up. As Mithu collapsed, the duo started molesting the girl.

Scores of passersby stood and watched as the girl pleaded for help. Someone called her father, who rushed from his home, about 1.5km away. The molestation continued in full public view. As soon as her father arrived, some 10 minutes later, four to five more bikers joined the duo and attacked him. One of the goons picked up a brick and smashed it on his head. He fell down, unconscious.

Finally, the locals reacted and challenged the molesters, who jumped on their bikes. Zafaruddin was caught but the rest managed to escape. He was handed to a police team from the Aminpur phanri. Ghosh was taken to Barasat district hospital where his head wound was stitched up. Another suspect, Mejo Khokon, was arrested later in the night, say police.

According to the girl's complaint, the youths had been harassing her for months. Last week, the gang had targeted her again but was warned by the girl's brothers. The bike gang took revenge on Friday, say police. Barasat additional SP Bhaskar Mukherjee said two of the accused have been arrested and roads are on to nab the rest.

Harassed by Mamata's party worker, woman tried suicide

Writers’ suicide bid: Woman was ‘harassed by in-laws’

Sumati Yengkhom TNN 11.11.11

Chanda Devi at the Medical College & Hospital

Kolkata: Sitting huddled in a hospital bed, Chanda Devi looks every bit a resigned woman. She has made many attempts to live, and one to die, and failed them all. Police at the state secretariat acted swiftly on Wednesday to prevent the 40-year-old Chanda Devi from committing suicide by consuming poison. 
    Recuperating in Medical College & Hospital Calcutta (MCHC), Chanda curses her fate. “I was better dead. Once discharged from hospital, I don’t know where to go,” she murmured, before cringing in fear at the mention of the Beliaghata address where she lived. 
    What is it that had left her terrorized? Listening to Chanda’s account, one realized it was a series of setbacks that had culminated in the suicide attempt. 
    “Didi was my last resort. I wanted to narrate my ordeal to her and hoped she would ensure justice. But when I was unable to meet her, I knew I was at the end of the road and tried to kill myself,” she said. 
    She had tried to meet the CM three months ago but failed even then. “My mother and I had gone to the state secretariat to meet Didi. Later, we went to her Kalighat home but failed to meet her,” revealed Chanda’s teenage daughter Swapna, traumatized by all that she has witnessed. According to Chanda, she was beaten up and forced to leave her 8/1 Nafar Koley Road home by her relatives and one Kali Das on Monday night. Kali, a Trinamool Congress worker, is known to flaunt his political connection in the locality. She spent the next two nights at the Sealdah Station, living on alms. Sometime during Tuesday night, she decided she would either get justice or end her life. On Wednesday, she bought poison and headed for Writers’ Buildings to meet the chief minister. 
    Chanda’s misfortune began over three years ago when her husband Durga Bhagat left for Delhi to live with his brother. Chanda was left to fend for herself and Swapna. She then started a small eatery in a neighbouring plot (12/1 Nafar Koley Road) owned by her inlaw’s family. 
    A year ago, the Bhagats forced her to shut down the eatery. She then found employment in a restaurant at an amusement park in Salt Lake. Fearing harm to her daughter, she gave up work and stayed at home. “I did not want to leave my teenage daughter alone,” said Chanda. Swapna is staying with a neighbour at present. 
    A section of locals claimed that Chanda had been driven out because she was a bad influence in the locality. “She sold liquor from the house and even indulged in flesh trade. Around 40 of us had submitted a mass petition to the Entally police station last month,” said a local. The allegations turn Swapna furious: “Where were these people who are talking about my mother’s morality when she was attacked?” 
    Chanda admits she sold liquor for six months. “I had to earn a living and being illiterate I had no alternative. But once there were objections, I stopped. Many men have tried to take advantage of my situation. Now, these very men are talking about morality,” Chanda mocked. Incidentally, 80-year-old Sudarshan and two other family members were arrested about three months ago after Chanda accused them of raping her. 
    “It is better to die than to be threatened day in and day out. At least, if the court takes over Swapna’s custody after my death, she will have a safe place to live in,” said Chanda. 
    Chanda claimed she had even approached local Trinamool Congress councilor Jiban Saha for help but the latter said he could not recall the instance. He, however, promised help. “I have heard about the suicide bid. Kali is a Trinamool Congress member but I have no knowledge of him harassing the woman. As a representative of people in this ward, I am bound to help her within my limits if she approaches me. She can also file a complaint with the police if she is being harassed,” said Saha.