West Bengal police inaction in immoral trafficking case of a Muslim woman

Kirity Roy, Secretary, Banglar Manabadhikar Suraksha Mancha (MASUM) writes to the Chairman, National Human Rights Commission, on Muslim woman victim trafficking, police inaction, and need immediate rescue:

I am writing to inform you about a case of illegal trafficking and profuse police inaction regarding the same of a marginalized Muslim teenager named Anima Khatun (name changed), daughter of Mr. Osman Ali. The victim and her husband had been residents of the village Daribas, under Dinhata police station Cooch Behar district since their marriage in 2014.
Six months following their marriage, Anima Khatun along with her husband, sister-in-law, sister-in-law's husband as well as her in-laws shifted to Delhi in search of work. They stayed there for 2 years after which they all came back to their native village. They stayed at their native residence for about one month and then they went back to Delhi. In Delhi, Anima was in touch with her family till the next six months, after which their contact snapped. Having lost touch for a long time, Anima's parents grew worried, her father eventually went to her in-laws house after he had been informed that all of them returned without his daughter. At their house he was sent back with the excuse that all of them were busy.
Sensing something wrong, Osman Ali lodged a written complaint to the police station on 19.4.2019. No immediate action was taken by the police in spite of the complaint. Osman Ali informed the police regarding the whereabouts of his daughter's in-laws' house yet the police had been reluctant to start working on the same. By then, Anima's husband had fled to Delhi, the police had also been informed of the same but day after day the police delayed enquiry in spite of the victim's father updating the complaint time and again. Finally, on 30.8.2019, Osman Ali submitted a written complaint explaining the whole incident to the S.P. of Cooch Behar where he described in detail how his son-in-law was roaming freely without his daughter and how they ignored his constant pleas of knowing the whereabouts of his daughter. During that time, they were residing at the victim's sister-in-law's house.
The Police then took Osman Ali and went to the place where his son-in-law was hiding. There the police came to know that the victim's husband had fled from the place a few days back. Osman Ali gathered information from the villagers of that area that the victim's sister-in-law's husband had been associated with trafficking. When Osman Ali informed the same to the police, the police arrested the accused and presented him at Dinhata court. However, no information could be gathered from him. In a state of immense harassment, Osman Ali had been given dates after dates but no-one could provide him with any information about his daughter. He had been informed that his son-in-law had been spotted in a Bangalore-based biscuit company which had duly been informed to the Dinhata police station but the police had not taken cognizance of the matter. Meanwhile the victim's sister-in-law's husband got bailed out of the jail. On 27 April 2022 Mr. Osman Ali, father of the victim girl, submitted another written application before the district superintendent of police alleging motivated inaction from the local police and solicited help to rescue his daughter. No action taken from the part of SP, Cooch Behar yet.
This is a gross violation of Article 23(1) which prohibits trafficking of human beings and forced labor. The accused should be charged under sections of Immoral Trafficking Prevention Act (ITPA). The total incident reflects that in West Bengal transparency of criminal justice administration are in a grey zone. It also violates Goal numbers 8 and 16 of the Sustainable Development Goals of the UN, which the Government of India promised to adhere with. Therefore, we seek your urgent intervention in the following matters:

The police should immediately take legal action against the accused and initiate a probe to find out the victim girl
Legal actions should be taken against the investigating officer who was reluctant to initiate an investigation in spite of being provided with all the relevant data
The victim's father and family members should also be provided with protection
The police should help the victim's father in every possible way so that the case can be resolved at the earliest
It should be probed whether the police (IO) is with nexus with the case

Comments

Gujarat Information Commission issues warning against misinterpretation of RTI orders

By A Representative The Gujarat Information Commission (GIC) has issued a press note clarifying that its orders limiting the number of Right to Information (RTI) applications for certain individuals apply only to those specific applicants. The GIC has warned that it will take disciplinary action against any public officials who misinterpret these orders to deny information to other citizens. The press note, signed by GIC Secretary Jaideep Dwivedi, states that the Right to Information Act, 2005, is a powerful tool for promoting transparency and accountability in public administration. However, the commission has observed that some applicants are misusing the act by filing an excessive number of applications, which disproportionately consumes the time and resources of Public Information Officers (PIOs), First Appellate Authorities (FAAs), and the commission itself. This misuse can cause delays for genuine applicants seeking justice. In response to this issue, and in acc...

A comrade in culture and controversy: Yao Wenyuan’s revolutionary legacy

By Harsh Thakor* This year marks two important anniversaries in Chinese revolutionary history—the 20th death anniversary of Yao Wenyuan, and the 50th anniversary of his seminal essay "On the Social Basis of the Lin Biao Anti-Party Clique". These milestones invite reflection on the man whose pen ignited the first sparks of the Great Proletarian Cultural Revolution and whose sharp ideological interventions left an indelible imprint on the political and cultural landscape of socialist China.

'MGNREGA crisis deepening': NSM demands fair wages and end to digital exclusions

By A Representative The NREGA Sangharsh Morcha (NSM), a coalition of independent unions of MGNREGA workers, has warned that the Mahatma Gandhi National Rural Employment Guarantee Act (MGNREGA) is facing a “severe crisis” due to persistent neglect and restrictive measures imposed by the Union Government.

Gandhiji quoted as saying his anti-untouchability view has little space for inter-dining with "lower" castes

By A Representative A senior activist close to Narmada Bachao Andolan (NBA) leader Medha Patkar has defended top Booker prize winning novelist Arundhati Roy’s controversial utterance on Gandhiji that “his doctrine of nonviolence was based on an acceptance of the most brutal social hierarchy the world has ever known, the caste system.” Surprised at the police seeking video footage and transcript of Roy’s Mahatma Ayyankali memorial lecture at the Kerala University on July 17, Nandini K Oza in a recent blog quotes from available sources to “prove” that Gandhiji indeed believed in “removal of untouchability within the caste system.”

Targeted eviction of Bengali-speaking Muslims across Assam districts alleged

By A Representative A delegation led by prominent academic and civil rights leader Sandeep Pandey visited three districts in Assam—Goalpara, Dhubri, and Lakhimpur—between 2 and 4 September 2025 to meet families affected by recent demolitions and evictions. The delegation reported widespread displacement of Bengali-speaking Muslim communities, many of whom possess valid citizenship documents including Aadhaar, voter ID, ration cards, PAN cards, and NRC certification.

'Centre criminally negligent': SKM demands national disaster declaration in flood-hit states

By A Representative The Samyukt Kisan Morcha (SKM) has urged the Centre to immediately declare the recent floods and landslides in Punjab, Himachal Pradesh, Jammu & Kashmir, Uttarakhand, and Haryana as a national disaster, warning that the delay in doing so has deepened the suffering of the affected population.

Saffron Kingdom – a cinematic counter-narrative to The Kashmir Files

By Syed Ali Mujtaba* “Saffron Kingdom” is a film produced in the United States by members of the Kashmiri diaspora, positioned as a response to the 2022 release “The Kashmir Files.” While the latter focused on the exodus of Kashmiri Pandits and framed Kashmiri Muslims as perpetrators of violence, “Saffron Kingdom” seeks to present an alternate perspective—highlighting the experiences of Kashmiri Muslims facing alleged abuses by Indian security forces.

From lazy to lost? The myths and realities behind generational panic about youth

By Bhabani Shankar Nayak Older generations in many societies often describe the young with labels such as “lazy, unproductive, lost, anxious, depoliticised, unpatriotic or wayward.” Others see them as “social media, mobile phone and porn addicts.” Such judgments arise from a generational anxiety rooted in fears of losing control and from distorted perceptions about youth, especially in the context of economic crises, conflicts, and wars in which many young lives are lost.

'Govts must walk the talk on gender equality, right to health, human rights to deliver SDGs by 2030'

By A Representative With just 64 months left to deliver on the Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs), global health and rights advocates have called upon governments to honour their commitments on gender equality and the human right to health. Speaking ahead of the 80th United Nations General Assembly (UNGA), experts warned that rising anti-rights and anti-gender pushes are threatening hard-won progress on SDG-3 (health and wellbeing) and SDG-5 (gender equality).

Counterview

Search This Blog