As the Durga Puja festivities went on in West Bengal, three Christian families in Patlapur village, Paschim Midnapur district, were allegedly subjected to three days of physical assault, sexual harassment, and continuous intimidation by a group of men who identified themselves as belonging to the Hindutva outfit Bajrang Dal.
An FIR naming 13 individuals was registered at Chandrakona police station. The victims alleged that the accused threatened to rape and kill them if they do not renounce their Christianity, coerced them into performing Hindu rituals, and even attacked and threatened minors. According to the complainants, the violence which allegedly began on October 18 continued till October 20.
Paschim Medinipur Superintendent of Police (SP) Papiya Sultana on October 23, Friday, told Alt News that the complainant’s statement would be recorded before a magistrate under Section 164 of the Code of Criminal Procedure (CrPC), 1973. “Today, Section 164 will be recorded in the case, and thereafter further investigation will take place,” the SP said.
However, three days on, police investigating the case told Alt News that no arrests had been made as of Friday, even though the affected families have been provided round-the-clock police protection.
According to a report published by The Wire, the three families, that of the complainant Lakshmi Mondal, Banashree Mondal, the complainant’s sister-in-law, and her neighbour, Saraswati Mondal, all willingly embraced Christianity several years ago. However, since last year, they were being initimidated by their own family members who refused to accept the change of faith.
Lakshmi and her husband Tapan Mondal told The Wire that their cousins-in-law repeatedly threatened them, prompting them to submit a written complaint to Chandrakona police station at the time; but no action was initiated.
Herod Mullick, founder of Bangiya Christiya Pariseba (BCP), told Alt News that the organisation’s Paschim Medinipur branch plans to send a fact-finding team to the village and seek a meeting with the district magistrate (DM) regarding the alleged attacks against these families.
Mullick further claimed that the families have not been baptised and do not possess baptism certificates, but are believers of Jesus Christ. “When I asked Lakshmi whether she possesses a baptism certificate, she denied. So, they are believers in Jesus Christ but are not yet baptised,” Mullick told Alt News.
What Does the FIR Say?
The FIR reveals that the complainant, Lakshmi Mondal, lodged a complaint against 13 individuals allegedly associated with Bajrang Dal. The complainant accuses them of inflicting physical torture, sexual harassment, coercion to change religious beliefs, along with death and rape threats and constant intimidation.
The individuals named in the FIR include Dilip Mishra, Bappaditya Chatterjee, Pocha Patra, Ranjit Dolui, Bapi Mandal, Tarun Mandal, Arun Mandal, Madan Manna and Ajit Dolui. The complaint also names Purnima Das, Suchitra Patra, Manimoyee Mukherjee, Mithu Dolui and other unidentified persons.
According to the FIR, on October 18, at around 3:30 pm, the group entered Mandal’s house and threatened and pressured the family to renounce Christianity and return to Hinduism.
‘Tore My Clothes, Attacked My Minor Daughter’
Lakshmi stated in her complaint that when the mob entered her house, Ranjit Dolui hit her on the head below her ear, causing her to lose consciousness. Later, when she partially regained consciousness, she realised that her clothes had been torn and Ranjit Dolui, Pocha Patra and Bapi Mondal had allegedly tried to disrobe her.
Lakshmi further alleged that the group forcefully bathed her in public as part of a “so-called purification ceremony”. “My clothes were removed without my consent, and I was forced to participate in the ritual against my will,” she said in her complaint.
“They splashed water on my face and eyes to bring me around. They poured water over my body in front of everyone, chanted ‘Jai Shri Ram’ and declared that I had been purified. I was lying on the floor of my house in that condition,” she told The Wire.
Lakshmi also alleged that Madan Manna verbally abused her using obscene and derogatory language. According to the FIR, her 16-year-old daughter was also subjected to verbal abuse and rape threats. The complaint records an alleged rape threat against the minor girl: “I’ll marry her to a Muslim boy; I will rape your daughter.”
The FIR states that two other families, that of Banashree and Saraswati, were also attacked, threatened and harassed across the three days. “We were threatened that if we went to the police, we would be burned alive,” the complaint states.
According to Lakshmi, one of the accused, Suchitra Patra, allegedly struck Banashree and Saraswati on their backs with bamboo sticks, and they were also verbally abused.
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The complaint further alleges that the accused broke the lock of Saraswati Mondal’s house, trespassed into their premises and approximately stole around Rs. 20,000 in cash.
Purnima Das, another person named in the FIR, allegedly strangled Banashree’s minor daughter with the intention of killing her — The 15-year-old girl was also allegedly threatened with abduction and rape.
‘Forced To Attend Durga Puja, Threatened To Kill Us’
Lakshmi stated in the FIR that she reached out to Chandrakona police on October 18, the first day of the alleged assault. The police personnel reportedly visited the place and heard her complaint.
However, the alleged intimidation continued the next day, October 19, when Madan Manna and Bappaditya Chatterjee allegedly forced Lakshmi, Tapan, Banashree, her husband Gopal, and one Pooja Mandal to a nearby Durga Puja pandal in Dingal village. Lakshmi alleged that they were compelled to perform Hindu rituals against their will.
The FIR stated that on the third consecutive day, on October 20, at around 7:30 am, Madan Manna and a few other accused allegedly barged into Lakshmi’s house and abducted her husband, Tapan and Saraswati’s husband Ashok Mandal and forcefully took them to an unknown location, where they were allegedly threatened to renounce their faith in Jesus Christ, or else they would be killed.
A few hours later, Lakshmi stated in her complaint, that Madan Manna and his associates returned to her house, abused her verbally and confined her to a room to prevent her from leaving. They also allegedly threatened to kill her and her entire family if they encountered her again.
The complaint states that elderly members of the family were also present during the alleged attacks and intimidation. Lakshmi mentioned that her paralysed father-in-law, Srikrishnapada Mondal, was inside the house as the harassment unfolded.
Police Register FIR
Chandrakona Police Station registered an FIR in the case. The accused were booked under various provisions of the Bharatiya Nyaya Sanhita (BNS), including Section 329(4) for house-trespass; Section 115(2) for voluntarily causing hurt; Section 117(2) for voluntarily causing grievous hurt; Section 109(1) for attempt to murder; Section 76 for assault or criminal force against a woman with the intent to disrobe her; Section 303(2) for theft; Section 351(3) for aggravated criminal intimidation; Section 79 for words, gestures or acts intended to insult the modesty of a woman; and Section 3(5), which deals with acts done by several persons in furtherance of a common intention.
This incident comes amidst a series of attacks against small Christian communities in the villages of West Bengal. Alt News had earlier reported that 35 incidents were documented between July 1 and September 20.
