Within 24 hours of the West Bengal Assembly passing the Aparajita Women and Child Bill on Tuesday (September 3, 2024), two cases of assault on women emerged in Kolkata.
While on Wednesday (September 4, 2024), a video went viral showing a man stabbing a young woman in Belgharia in north Kolkata, on Tuesday (September 3, 2024) a woman singer and her sister were allegedly sexually assaulted by two Delhi-based men at a hotel around midnight during a party.
In Belgharia, the woman was attacked by the man after a verbal altercation. Police said she is fighting for her life at a private hospital in the EM Bypass area. Police have booked the attacker for attempt to murder.
Soon after the video of the incident emerged, locals blocked the Belgharia Expressway Road in protest, demanding safety. They lifted the blockade after police pacified them.
Sex assault
Police said a woman singer, part of a popular music competition, was sexually assaulted at a party in a five-star hotel on the EM Bypass. The singer told police that her sister was also assaulted by the two men one of whom is an NRI. The two accused inappropriately touched and molested the women and threatened them with dire consequences. Police have arrested the two men.
The two incidents took place on the day when the Bill promising stringent punishment for rape was passed. The same day there were protests on the EM Bypass where medical professionals from across the State formed a 13-km-long human chain and sought justice for the R.G. Kar victim.
On Tuesday (September 3, 2024), amidst ongoing protests, West Bengal Chief Minister Mamata Banerjee described the Bill as a “historic and model Bill”. “Any well-meaning person will support it,” she said.
Published - September 04, 2024 08:29 pm IST
