The recent assault
and rape of Joba, a 35 year old resident of Dogachia village, P.O. Nakashipara,
P.S. Nakashipara of Nadia by Haider Ali of the same village have brought
forward the miseries of the entire Hindu community who appear to be living on
the edge. The Hindus, represented by 70 odd household out of a total of over
1500, complain of police high-handedness and repression with no hope of
justice. On 30th June
at around 11 am,
Joba (name changed) was on her way to the toilet in the nearby paddy field.
Unnoticed by the victim, 32 year old Haider Ali, son of Wasaf Sheikh, followed
her and while she was returning, Haider grabbed and dragged her back the field.
Even though she put up strong resistance, Haider came out too strong and the
victim was subsequently overpowered after he broke her right leg with a bamboo
stick. Haider eventually raped her and fled. Even though she was terribly
injured, Joba managed to raise an alarm and hearing the same, neighboring
Hindus from nearby houses rushed to the spot. Without wasting time, they ran
after Haider but could not find him as he managed to flee. To save the
situation, a team of police entered the village at that time but the sexual
assault of Joba was too much for the Hindus to watch silently. When they
decided to protest the incident, the police asked them to stop the agitation
immediately. Following this, the situation worsened dramatically and resulted
in a clash between protesters and the police. In the ensuing chaos, the
windowpane of the police van was broken.
Even though Haider Ali was arrested the next day from nearby Palashi village, miseries of the members of the Hindu community in general continue to exist. The oppression results not only from Islamist leaders who enjoy the backing of the opportunist political leaders eyeing electoral votes of the majority Muslims of the village but also from the police themselves. The fear is so palpable that male members of Hindu families, including children, have been forced to flee. As fresh reports come in, the police continue to harass the Hindus. Swapan Ghosh, a local leader and key protester against the ravishment of Joba, has been thrashed mercilessly and is now on the run while Joba has been admitted to the district hospital at Shaktinagar in a critical condition. A first information report (FIR No. 585) dated June 30 has been lodged against Haider but Hindus in the village continue to have sleepless nights yet.
Even though Haider Ali was arrested the next day from nearby Palashi village, miseries of the members of the Hindu community in general continue to exist. The oppression results not only from Islamist leaders who enjoy the backing of the opportunist political leaders eyeing electoral votes of the majority Muslims of the village but also from the police themselves. The fear is so palpable that male members of Hindu families, including children, have been forced to flee. As fresh reports come in, the police continue to harass the Hindus. Swapan Ghosh, a local leader and key protester against the ravishment of Joba, has been thrashed mercilessly and is now on the run while Joba has been admitted to the district hospital at Shaktinagar in a critical condition. A first information report (FIR No. 585) dated June 30 has been lodged against Haider but Hindus in the village continue to have sleepless nights yet.
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