Durgapur gang rape exposes chinks in Bengal women’s safety yet again

When the rape and murder of a 31-year-old junior doctor at the state-run RG Kar Medical College Hospital in Kolkata shook Bengal to its core in August 2024, the seat of power wobbled too. Questions were raised, demands were made, and the state made promises galore.

While the government launched the ‘Rattirer Shaathi’ (Friends of the Night) initiative, the Assembly unanimously passed the Aparajita Women and Child (West Bengal Criminal Laws Amendment) Bill the very next month to fast-track investigations and trials of cases of rape and sexual assault.

And yet, case after case of sexual atrocities against women have continued, the latest being the brutal gang rape of a second-year medical student in Durgapur, exposing severe shortcomings in the enforcement and effectiveness of the safety measures announced by the state government following the RG Kar case to strengthen protection for women.

Also read: RG Kar, law college, Sandeshkhali: Bengal’s chilling nexus of crime and politics

Rattirer Shaathi a dud, Aparajita Bill gathers dust

Take Rattirer Shaathi for example. It was launched to safeguard women in workplaces and institutions, mandating enhanced CCTV surveillance in medical facilities, hostels, and other professional environments. It also includes provisions for deploying female volunteers and increasing night-time police patrols around medical colleges, hospitals, and women’s hostels.

Additionally, the initiative calls for the development and implementation of a mobile application with an alarm system connected to local police stations. However, as the Durgapur incident showed, not a single one of these was in place.

The assault occurred in a secluded, forested area about 1.5 km from the campus of the private medical college the survivor studies in. According to police sources, the area lacked adequate CCTV surveillance. No police patrols were present at the time either.

While Asansol-Durgapur Police Commissioner Sunil Kumar Choudhary claimed that police patrol vans do make rounds from time to time, he declined to comment further on the security arrangements or the ongoing investigation.

As for the Aparajita Bill — which proposes capital punishment for rape cases where the victim dies or is left in a vegetative state, mandates life imprisonment without parole for other rape perpetrators and requires the investigation of child sexual assault cases to conclude within 21 days of the FIR filing — it is yet to become law. President Droupadi Murmu returned it to Raj Bhavan in July this year, seeking clarification on why a new state law was necessary despite existing national laws in this matter.

Also read: A year after RG Kar horror, anger, discontent still on the boil

Unsafe campuses

In between the RG Kar case and the Durgapur incident, West Bengal, particularly Kolkata, which has been bagging India’s “safest city” tag for several consecutive years, has been rocked by at least two major sexual assault cases on campuses, highlighting a distressing criminal trend that appears to be gaining ground despite official claims of action and vigilance.

Within two days of the Durgapur incident, police on Sunday (October 12) arrested a well-known YouTuber and his minor son for allegedly raping a Class 9 schoolgirl after luring her with the promise of featuring her in reels. The incident took place in the Harua Police Station area in North 24-Parganas district. The 15-year-old was allegedly raped multiple times.

Before that, on June 25, a first‑year student at South Calcutta Law College was allegedly gang‑raped inside the guard’s room on the campus. The accused include a former student and practising lawyer, plus current students.

The very next month, a woman was allegedly sexually assaulted by a student inside a hostel room on the campus of the prestigious Indian Institute of Management‑Calcutta.

Also read: Mamata on Durgapur gangrape: 'Girls shouldn’t venture out at night'

Social degeneration?

In 2023 alone, West Bengal registered 1,110 cases of rape, including 27 cases where minors were the victims. Many of these crimes occurred in areas with little law enforcement presence or inadequate surveillance infrastructure, especially in rural or semi-urban parts of the state.

The crime scene of the Durgapur incident lacked basic safety measures such as CCTV cameras and adequate lighting, too. The young medical student from Odisha had stepped out for dinner with a male friend when she was allegedly gang-raped near the campus of her private medical college in a poorly lit and secluded area behind the hospital premises, according to police.

West Bengal Governor CV Ananda Bose has voiced deep concern over the rising instances of crimes against women in the state. Describing it as a reflection of social degeneration, the governor has called for immediate and firm governmental action.

“This shows a degeneration in the society. The government has to act firm. We will certainly take stern steps to ward off such things in future,” the governor told the media.

Also read: Durgapur gangrape: CM’s remark sparks Oppn ire; victim’s father cites life threat

Alarming trend in crime record

His remarks were in response to a series of recent cases where allegations of rape, often involving multiple perpetrators, have surfaced from different districts, triggering public protests and political confrontation.

Despite a marginal decrease in crime against women in the state, official data reveals an alarming trend. According to the National Crime Records Bureau (NCRB), West Bengal registered 34,691 cases of crime against women in 2023, only slightly lower than the 34,738 cases recorded in 2022.

However, the crime rate, calculated per lakh of female population, remains high at 71.3, which is above the national average of 66.2. Notably, a significant proportion of these crimes fall under the category of assault on women with the intent to outrage modesty.

While West Bengal boasted a commendable charge-sheeting rate of 93.8 per cent for crimes against women in 2023, with charges filed in 34,344 out of 34,691 reported cases, this has clearly failed to act as a deterrent, as the pursuit of justice is frequently hindered by trial delays.

Also read: Durgapur gang rape: 2 more arrested; cops say ‘all 5 accused’ held

Culture of victim blaming

Just like the RG Kar and the law college cases, the Durgapur incident has intensified calls for stricter campus safety protocols and swift judicial action.

Chief Minister Mamata Banerjee, while condemning the incident, has stressed a zero-tolerance policy towards such crimes. Yet, her remarks about why the private college allowed the students to leave the campus at night, and that women and responsible for their own safety and should avoid going out at night, have drawn severe criticism.

This tendency to shift the blame on to the victims, thus fostering a culture of impunity, potentially shielding politically connected perpetrators, may be posing the first hurdle in the way of genuine enhancement of safety measures for women across the state.