‘Reclaim the Night’: Thousands rally across Bengal, police pick up two for misbehaving with women

PTI, Sep 5, 2024, 10:10 AM IST

Kolkata: Thousands of women across West Bengal marched in midnight as part of the second edition of the “Reclaim the Night” campaign, demanding justice for a doctor who was allegedly raped and murdered at a state-run hospital in Kolkata last month.

The campaign on Wednesday night, the second one after August 14, witnessed stray undesired incidents in which two persons were taken into custody by the police in separate spots of Kolkata for misbehaving with protesting women. In north Bengal’s Mathabhanga town, a protester was assaulted allegedly by members of the Trinamool Congress (TMC).

The “Reclaim the Night” movement, largely driven by social media, gained momentum as protests kicked off at 11:30 pm, marking the second such gathering since a midnight campaign on August 14.

Across the state, from small towns to bustling cities, the air reverberated with the rallying cry: “We want justice”.

Political party flags were notably absent, and protesters were seen holding the national flags aloft, underscoring the unified call for justice beyond partisan lines.

At various spots in and around Kolkata, women from all walks of life – actors, students, professionals and homemakers – marched together carrying posters and candles, their voices rising in unison against the violence that had claimed the doctor’s life.

In a particularly moving moment in the city’s Sealdah Station, pavement dwellers joined the demonstration, with some women blowing conch shells, a traditional symbol of resistance and defiance. The sound resonated through the station, adding an unexpected yet reinvigorating touch to the protest.

The movement spread to other key locations in various district towns, including Berhampore, Chinsurah, Santiniketan, Krishnanagar, Bardhaman, Siliguri, Barasat, Barrackpore, Rajarhat-Newtown, Cooch Behar, Mathabhanga and Jalpaiguri.

The movement, however, witnessed some stray incidents in which one male protestor was assaulted while two others misbehaved with women at separate places.

At Jadavpur in Kolkata, one person was arrested for allegedly molesting a woman when a large number of people assembled at 8B Bus Stand area to demand justice for the raped and murdered doctor.

The unidentified man, who was allegedly in an inebriated state, was whisked away by the policemen present and taken to the nearby police station. A group of students from Jadavpur University, film and stage actors and others followed them.

A police official said an FIR was lodged against the accused by the victim woman, who was escorted to the police station by actor Sohini Sarkar.

Her industry colleagues Bidipta Chakraborty, Sudipta Chakraborty and Birsha Dasgupta also went to the police station to offer moral support to the woman who identified the alleged molester before the police.

In another rally at Garia in southern Kolkata, a youth was detained by police for allegedly misbehaving with women. The youth, also intoxicated, was beaten up by other protesters before being handed over to the authorities.

In Mathabhanga town in Cooch Behar district, a protester was assaulted allegedly Trinamool Congress (TMC) members.

Pradyut Saha, a branch secretary of the CPI(M) and an employee of the Mathabhanga Municipality, was allegedly attacked during a demonstration.

CPI(M) filed a complaint with the police regarding the incident. The TMC denied involvement of any party member in the assault.

In another incident at Kolkata, actor Rituparna Sengupta faced hostility from a group of protesters at Shyambazar as she arrived at the protest venue.

When she attempted to address the crowd, protestors shouted: “Go back.” As the situation escalated, the police and Sengupta’s bodyguards escorted her to her vehicle, which then left the area.