Alipurduar: Three held for assaulting tribal woman

Darjeeling: An incident of a tribal woman being beaten up and paraded naked has come to light in the Alipurduar district with a video clip going viral. Three persons have been arrested in connection with the incident.

The incident occurred in Pashim Changmari village under the Khoyardanga 1 Gram Panchayat in the Kumargram block of Alipurduar on Sunday night.

A group of villagers had organised a kangaroo court and tried a tribal woman for allegedly having an extramarital affair. They then beat

her up, paraded her naked and drove her out of the village.

A video clip of the whole incident appeared on social media. The woman then went missing.

Police initially started a suo moto case based on the video clip.

"We have started an investigation. Three persons have been arrested in connection with the case. Charged under various sections of the IPC they were produced at an Alipurduar court on Monday. We are on the lookout for others involved in the case. The woman has been rescued," stated Bholanath Pandey, Superintendent of Police, Alipurduar.

The arrested include Bhabesh Kujur, Dipon Toppo and Sujit Lakra. Later the family members of the victim lodged an FIR naming 11 persons.

"This incident is inhuman and barbaric. The culprits will definitely be brought to book. We demand exemplary punishment of all those who were involved in the incident," stated Dhiresh Chandra Roy, TMC, Block President.

Local residents claimed that the woman had eloped with a person around 6 months ago leaving behind her three children and husband. Later the man she had eloped with had abandoned her. She then went to live with her parents. Recently her husband brought her back from her parent's house. The neighbours along with a few others from the village had then dragged her out from the house and tried her in a Kangaroo Court.