Two women stripped, beaten in Bengal’s Malda; Political row errupts

Two tribal women were allegedly “stripped naked, tortured and beaten mercilessly” in West Bengal’s Malda District three days ago. Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) targets Chief Minister Mamata Banerjee for failing to provide security to women in the State.

In response, the Trinamool Congress, led by Mamata Banerjee, said that the BJP was unnecessarily politicising the matter and that the two women had been caught stealing, which had incensed the villagers. Amit Malviya, the chairman of the BJP’s IT department, posted a video of the event on Twitter. He said it happened on July 19 in Pakua Hat, a weekly market near the Bamangola Police Station in Malda.

TMC in its response said that the BJP was needlessly politicising the issue.

Women and Child Development Minister of West Bengal Shashi Panja said, “There is no need to politicise the Malda incident. It was a case of theft, where the two ladies tried to steal something from the market. A group of women tried to take law and order into their hands and started beating them. However, the police reached the spot. A case has been registered and police are investigating the matter.”
“It has nothing to do with politics though we have taken suo motu of the incident,” Panja said.

“The horror continues in West Bengal. Two Tribal women were stripped naked, tortured and beaten mercilessly, while police remained a mute spectator in Pakua Hat area of Bamangola Police Station, Malda,” Malviya tweeted.

Mamata Banerjee had attacked the BJP-led government over the incident in Manipur, where the BJP is in power. Two women were paraded naked in Manipur. A video of the May 4 incident went viral on social media, sparking outrage across the country and political leaders denouncing it. The topic was brought up by opposition leaders during the current Monsoon session of Parliament.

CPI (M) leader Brinda Karat said, “Malda’s incident should not be compared with that of Manipur. Atrocities against women in any part of the country are condemnable…West Bengal’s incident where ‘Adivasi’ women can be seen beating other ‘Adivasi’ women is condemnable…It is just an example of the West Bengal government’s lawlessness.”