New Delhi
After the State’s BJP leaders complained to it about some Trinamool Congress leaders in West Bengal having forced three tribal women to perform “dandavat parikrama” (circumambulation in a prostrate position) as a punishment for joining the BJP, the National Commission for Scheduled Tribes (NCST) has launched an inquiry into the allegations. The NCST has also issued a notice to the West Bengal police, asking it to submit facts of the Balurghat incident and an action taken report.
The Bengal police finally acted on Thursday by arresting two persons — Ananda Roy, General Secretary, Balurghat Town Trinamool Youth Congress and Biswanath Das, an aide of Paradipta Chakraborty, the sacked District Mahila Trinamool Congress chief. The police said they were booked under IPC Sections 505 and 509 and SC and ST (Prevention of Atrocities) Act. The two were produced in court and remanded to judicial custody.
On Monday, State BJP president Sukanta Majumdar had written to the Commission, demanding an inquiry into the matter and strict action against those responsible. He had also drawn the attention of President Droupadi Murmu. The Bengal BJP had also posted a video of the three tribal women in the parikrama act triggering widespread condemnation and outrage.
In a damage control measure, the TMC sacked its local leadership and made new replacements, with one even being a tribal, even as the victims in question sought to deny they were forced to do so by the ruling party leaders.
In its letter to the Bengal DGP Manoj Malaviya, the Commission stated that it has decided to investigate the matter and that he submit facts and information on the action taken on the allegations within three days.
The NCST also said it will issue summons for personal appearance if the West Bengal Police chief failed to respond in stipulated time.
Majumdar alleged that around 200 people from tribal families in his Balurghat Lok Sabha constituency joined the BJP on April 6, which did not go down well with a section of the TMC leadership.
He claimed that TMC “goons” pressured those families and forced some of them to join the TMC. In an example of “inhuman medieval period autocracy”, four poor tribal women were forced to do “dandavat parikrama” for about a kilometre as punishment for joining the BJP.
They were later given the TMC flag in the district party office, Majumdar claimed. A video of the purported incident showed three women doing the parikrama.
