A woman, who was captured in a viral video being beaten publicly along with a man in West Bengal's Uttar Dinajpur district, has now made a U-turn and claimed that the footage was recorded without her permission.
The victim who is recovering at a government hospital said she has filed a written complaint to the police, seeking action against those who filmed her being thrashed and beaten repeatedly by an alleged aide of a Trinamool Congress MLA in the Chopra area.
"I don't know who made my video viral. I have submitted a written complaint at the police station against whoever made it viral. Someone made that video viral without my permission. I have appealed to the police to ensure punishment against those who did it. I have full faith in the police," she said.
The man seen in a viral video beating up the couple with a bamboo stick was identified as Tajmul alias 'JCB', purportedly a Trinamool Congress leader of Chopra area. He was arrested on June 30. Tajmul was remanded to five days in police custody after being produced before a local court.
The opposition BJP accused the Trinamool Congress of implementing "Taliban rule" and "Sharia law" in West Bengal and alleged that Tajmul had ties to Chopra MLA Hamidul Rahaman, who reportedly defended him despite the Mamata Banerjee-led party's condemnation of the incident.
The BJP has called for Mamata Banerjee's resignation, alleging that law and order completely collapsed in the state.
Union Minister and West Bengal BJP chief Sukanta Majumdar alleged that the police were hand-in-glove with the state government and that the public flogging was ordered by Hamidul Rahaman, the Chopra MLA.
"There is a Talibani rule in West Bengal. This is the fourth mob lynching incident starting from Cooch Behar to Chopra. Such incidents will go on and happen in front of the police. People have lost trust in the police. We can't even see the police, even through a microscope. This (flogging) has been done on MLA Hamidul Rahaman's orders," he told reporters.
Meanwhile, Governor CV Ananda Bose, who has had strained relations with the state government over various issues, sought a report from Mamata Banerjee over the incident. He described it as "barbarous".
Bose, who is currently in Delhi, will visit Chopra on Tuesday and meet the victims of the attack. He is likely to return to the national capital from there and file a report to the central government on the incident, a Raj Bhavan official said.
According to the police, the public flogging of the couple was ordered by a kangaroo court over allegations of an illicit relationship. Locals allege that Tajmul was notorious for conducting kangaroo courts and extorting money from people.
Hamidul Rahaman, the local MLA, accused the couple of "polluting society by engaging in an illicit relationship".
"The couple was allegedly engaged in an illicit relationship, which is why they were beaten up. They were socially polluting society through their activities. The woman was at fault for getting involved in an illicit relationship despite having a son and husband. Is this not a crime? Is this not an immoral act?" he said.
Amid the controversy, senior Trinamool Congress leader Shantanu Sen said the state government was taking steps to address the situation.
"We do not support such incidents. The victims have been provided with security. Anyone else involved will also not be spared," he said.
(with inputs from PTI)
Published By:
Prateek Chakraborty
Published On:
Jul 2, 2024
English (US) ·