Demonstrations were held throughout West Bengal on August 19 protesting against the brutal gangrape and murder of a CPI(M) member in Contai, East Midnapur district. The 47-year old Anganwadi worker was dragged out of her house in Sunia village, brutally beaten and paraded naked before she was gang-raped and killed on August 17.
The victim has been working at the ICDS center in nearby Faridpur Vivekananda Club since 1997. Her husband, Byomkehs Giri, is a CPI(M) local committee member, who along with his son was forced to leave the village following terror unleashed by the TMC soon after Mamata came to power. The victim, however, stayed back in the village.
A gang of about 15 TMC goons turned up at the victim’s house on Sunday morning, allegedly led by Debashis Bhunia, who is a Karmadhaksha of Deshapran Block, as well as Block President of the Trinamool’s youth wing. The goons decreed that she either bring her husband and son back to the village or pay a penalty of Rs 15 lakh.The victim woman called up her husband, who in turn requested the Contai police station to provide protection to his wife. But the police did nothing. The goons returned to victim’s house a few hours later demanding the money. She expressed her inability to pay the amount. Her husband called up the police again.
The goondas came back again at 6.00 p.m, dragged her out of the house, stripped and beat her mercilessly. Her brother-in-law who tried to resist them was also brutally beaten up, his limbs tied and bolted inside an empty shed in the village. The villagers dared not intervene.
The victim was made to sit in the village square till nearly 10 p.m., while the TMC goons took turns at beating her all through. At around 10 p.m. they dragged her back to her house, gang-raped and killed her. After committing this horrendous crime, the body of the woman was hung from the ceiling to pass it off as suicide.
The local CPI(M) unit blocked the Digha-Mecheda Road for about half an hour from 11.30 a.m on August 18. The blockade was lifted only after the police assured that an impartial investigation would be conducted. CPI(M) State Secretary Biman Basu said that since the last three years there has been a terrible rise in the violence against women in the state.