Voice 9, Kolkata, Delhi: In the midst of the night, a multitude of women
surged onto the streets in various regions of West Bengal. Women from myriad
parts of the nation have mobilized to denounce the abominable rape and murder
of a 31-year-old physician at Kolkata's RG Kar Medical College and Hospital. In
Kolkata, Delhi, and other urban centers, women are engaging in candlelight
vigils and peaceful demonstrations, clamoring for justice for the victim.
As the clock struck midnight and the dawn of independence approached,
Bengalis and the entirety of India roused from their slumber. The night
advanced, and the throngs swelled. Girls commenced seizing the streets on
Wednesday night. Jadavpur, Academy, College Street—every nook of the city,
district after district, teemed with assemblies. Extending beyond state
boundaries to Delhi, Mumbai, and Bangalore, the night reverberates with demands
for justice amidst adversity.
The night's reach extends as far as Edinburgh. From Kolkata to Cooch Behar, from Bongaon to Behala, women have taken to the nocturnal streets. Brandishing banners, they traverse the thoroughfares. Men stand in solidarity. Some clutch torches, others illuminate the path with their mobile flashlights. A unanimous cry resonates: the quest for justice in the face of oppression. The chant "We Want Justice" reverberates from every lip. It's not confined to Kolkata alone; the entire state mirrors this fervor. In essence, it's an impromptu public awakening.
"This night signifies the emancipation of women within and beyond West Bengal. A new struggle for freedom commences tonight," proclaimed Rimjhim Sinha, the initiator of this movement, in a Facebook post.
The rallying call on social media to reclaim the night has swiftly gained
momentum, with students, homemakers, professionals, and individuals from
diverse backgrounds gearing up to converge on pivotal avenues in towns and
metropolises, including Kolkata.
The protest, commencing at 11.55 p.m., has been dubbed "for women's
independence on the midnight of independence." Similar scenes unfolded in
Mumbai and Hyderabad, where residents participated in a serene candlelight
demonstration. According to reports in Bengali media, researcher Rimjhim Sinha
was the pioneer in calling for the'reclaim the night' protest following the RG
Kar incident.
The lifeless body of the female doctor, partially unclothed, was discovered
in the seminar hall of the government-operated PG Kar Medical College on Friday
morning. A civic volunteer affiliated with the Kolkata Police was apprehended
in connection with this heinous act on Saturday.
The post-mortem report of the trainee doctor indicated that the perpetrator
struck her with such force that her spectacles shattered, with shards piercing
her eyes. He subjected her to sexual assault before smothering her to death, as
per the report estimating the time of demise between 3 a.m. and 5 a.m. on
Friday.
Today, more harrowing details have surfaced in the ghastly rape-murder, with the victim's parents alleging that their daughter was gang-raped. The petition revealed that the autopsy unveiled 150 mg of semen in the victim's body, "a quantity indicative of multiple perpetrators, further substantiating the suspicion of gang rape."
