After Manipur, horror in Howrah; woman paraded naked in West Bengal

Kolkata: After the video of 2 women being paraded naked in Manipur surfaced on Wednesday, a similar horror has been reported in Howrah, West Bengal, ruled by Mamata Banerjee.

A woman candidate for a gram panchayat has accused Trinamool Congress goons of stripping her naked and parading her around the village on Panchayat election day.

The incident took place on July 8 in Dakshin Panchla under the Panchla police station in Howrah district.

An FIR has been registered at the Panchla police station in the matter.

"On the polling day (8 July 2023), while the voting was ongoing, the TMC candidate of the same Gram Sabha named Hemanta Roy, and a few other TMC supported anti-social elements named Alfi Sk., Sukamal Panja, Ranabir Panja, Sanju Das, Noor Alam and about 40-50 other miscreants physically assaulted me at the polling station. They hit me on my chest, and head with sticks and pushed me out of the polling booth," read the FIR.

"While some of these men were hitting me, Himanta Roy instigated Ali Sheikh and Sukamal Panja to tear my saree and inner dress. They further assaulted me and force undress me to naked and molested me in front of other people," the FIR added.

Bengal BJP's co-incharge Amit Malviya attacked West Bengal Chief Minister Mamata Banerjee over this incident.

In a quote tweet on Benerjee's criticism of the Manipur incident, Malviya alleged that Bengal Police tried to avoid registering the FIR and claimed that BJP had to force it down.

Do you have any shame at all Mamata Banerjee?



On 8th Jul 2023, day of Panchayat poll, a Gram Sabha candidate, a woman, was beaten, stripped naked and paraded in Howrah’s Panchla, stones throw away from Nabanno, where you sit.



Your police wasn’t even taking FIR till the BJP… https://t.co/hAYTF7N3KP

— Amit Malviya (@amitmalviya) July 20, 2023

After the news was reported in media on Friday, West Bengal DGP M. Malaviya held a press conference.

“During probe, evidence shows that no such incident occurred. Police and Central Forces were present in the polling booth. Further probe is underway,” DGP said.

On 13 July, SP Howrah Rural received a complaint by email from BJP that on July 8 a woman was forcibly pulled out from a polling booth in Howrah's Panchla and her clothes were torn. On this complaint, police were directed to file FIR and conduct further investigation. During… pic.twitter.com/KR4X0jI9cX

— ANI (@ANI) July 21, 2023