The spot where the incident allegedly took place

KOLKATA: A 25-year-old student, pursuing her MPhil at Jadavpur University, was allegedly threatened with rape by a middle-aged woman at the Lords Crossing in south Kolkata. Her fault — she was wearing shorts and a T-shirt.

The girl, a former Presidency University student, was slapped twice in front of locals when she tried to protest. A delegation of JU students met the deputy police commissioner of the area after the which the girl lodged an FIR with Lake police. Cops have got hold of CCTV footage from a bank and an eatery.

The girl, who hails from Bongaon, said she had stayed in Salt Lake for five years while studying at Presidency. “I shifted to the Jodhpur Gardens area two years ago after joining JU,” she said. “Around 1.30pm last Thursday, I went out to buy a few staff just a few metres from my PG accommodation. Soon, I was accosted by this woman near a bank. She was wearing a silk saree. She turned towards me and said: ‘Tomader moto meyeder ekkhuni rape kora uchit (girls like you should be raped)’. Initially, I was shocked. But then I protested saying she had no right and moral authority to make any comment on me. I pointed out that what she did was a criminal offence,” recalled the victim.

The accused then allegedly verbally abused the student. Unable to bear any more, the student decided to approach the traffic cop nearby. The woman then slapped the victim. “Stunned, I tried to point out that she was taking this too far. She then slapped me again. By this time, others tried to step in. Realizing that she was being surrounded, the woman fled. Iwas in shock and trauma. It was for my friends that I could finally manage to reorganize myself. My house owner too played a positive role. It was on the advice of cops that I filed the FIR, “said the woman.

An FIR under IPC sections related to hurt, wrongful restraint and outraging the modesty of a woman has been registered. “It’s a rare case when a woman has been named for outraging the modesty of another woman. The accused probably lives somewhere near Dhakuria. We might ask the victim to record her statement in front of a magistrate,” said an officer.



In Video: You should be raped: Kolkata woman to MPhil student wearing shorts