The assault allegedly occurred when Kolkata Police baton-charged protesters at the Park Street crossing in central Kolkata, attempting to disperse the crowd that was trying to breach police barricades and move towards Vidyasagar Setu in their bid to reach the secretariat.
“The police shoved me and pinned me to the ground. They broke my ‘shankha’ (traditional conch shell bangle) and I sustained an injury on my forehead,” the victim’s mother claimed. She further alleged that four to five police personnel manhandled her during the scuffle between the police and protesters.
However, the police denied using force on the parents of the victim. “We have no information about the victim’s parents getting beaten up by the police at the Park Street crossing. Police did not do anything to the parents at this point. But their allegations will be duly investigated,” said DC (Port), Harikrishna Pai.
Undeterred by the police’s actions, both parents of the RG Kar victim continued their march and reached Hastings at the foot of Vidyasagar Setu, where they were again stopped by a police barricade.
“Why are they stopping us like this? All we want is to reach Nabanna and seek justice for my daughter,” the victim’s mother said.
The rally participants, many of whom were calling for the resignation of Chief Minister Mamata Banerjee, accused her of “failing to protect women.”
“Police tried to block us by putting up barricades. Why are you so inhuman? Why are you scared of us? We are unarmed,” the mother said, asserting she would not stop until she meets the Chief Minister to demand justice for her daughter. She was later moved to a private hospital to treat her injuries.
“The police could not save my daughter or bring her justice, but they didn’t think twice about beating up women and elderly persons,” she added.
The RG Kar victim’s father also alleged that police tried to prevent the family from reaching Dorina Crossing to join the march, despite having court permission for a peaceful rally.
“The police were following us from the time we left our home. At the Sinthi crossing, when we entered Kolkata Police jurisdiction, police passed on information about our vehicle to the forward posts in the city so that we could be stopped. We had to play a cat-and-mouse game with the police to reach the Dorina Crossing assembly point in central Kolkata,” the victim’s father alleged.
“They have been harassing the protesters and have tried every means at their disposal to stop the agitators from conducting their march from Esplanade,” he added.
Police lathi-charged protesters at the Park Street crossing after agitators tried to break through barricades, despite police warnings not to move beyond the Rani Rashmoni Road assembly point.
Leader of the Opposition in the state assembly, Suvendu Adhikari, along with BJP leader Agnimitra Paul and other party MLAs, staged a sit-in at the Park Street-J L Nehru Road crossing, alleging that more than 100 protesters, including Adhikari and other BJP leaders, were injured in the police action.
Tight security arrangements were made along the protest route, and protesters scuffled with the police at Santragachi in Howrah district.
Debanshu Bhattacharya, Trinamool Congress social media cell chief, blamed “BJP’s narrow and dirty politics” for the ruckus on the streets of Kolkata.
“This is exactly what the BJP wanted: to create chaos on the streets, and when police respond, get the victim’s parents involved in it. I feel sorry for the victim’s parents, who were trapped in the narrow and dirty politics of the BJP,” he said.
State minister Sashi Panja also accused the BJP of attempting to create division in society on Raksha Bandhan day.
“Today is the day when Rabindranath Tagore tied a Rakhi as a symbol of peace and communal harmony. However, the BJP has shown no respect for Bengal’s traditions and is attempting to disrupt law and order while people celebrate the sacred bond of brotherhood and sisterhood,” she said.
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