Woman dragged out of train, raped

KOLKATA: A young housewife, on way to her in-laws' place here, was dragged out of a train in Bihar and allegedly raped by some miscreants, the city police said on Sunday.

The woman, who lives at her in-laws' place at Narikeldanga in north Kolkata, was returning by train on Friday with a eight-month-old son after a short visit to her parental home in Bihar's Seikhpura district.

"She has lodged a complaint that three youths living close to her parental house followed her into the train and dragged her out at Kiule station. She was taken to a house and raped. She became unconscious," said deputy commissioner (Central) of city police Ajay Ranade.

On regaining consciousness, the woman took the Danapur Express and returned to Kolkata.

"She informed her husband, an employee in a shoe company, of her plight on Saturday. He admitted her to the Calcutta Medical College and Hospital, where the doctors asked her to file a complaint," Ranade said.

A first information report has been lodged at the Bowbazar police station. Ranade said though the incident occurred in Bihar, the city police were taking the matter very seriously considering the nature of the crime.


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CPM's partyman thrashed an elderly couple

A day after chief minister Buddhadeb Bhattacharjee addressed the Nandigram villagers, his partymen on Thursday thrashed an elderly couple at Southkhali village for refusing to join a CPM rally. The couple — sympathisers of Bhumi Uchchhed Pratirodh Committee — had to be hospitalised.

However, CPM's Nandigram zonal committee secretary Ashok Bera said it was an "isolated and minor" incident. Asking his partymen not to treat Opposition members as enemies, Bera said, "We are trying to convince our supporters. But BUPC members are also creating trouble in many places. Opposition has a responsibility, too."

Thursday's incident pointed to the volatile nature of the situation at 'ground zero'. Said Ashok Munian, a BUPC member from Maheshpur village, "The CM is talking peace. But it must be translated at the ground level. We are still being threatened and assaulted by CPM cadres. How can peace return if such things continue?"

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West Bengal CM visited the Nandigram

West Bengal Chief Minister Buddhadeb Bhattacharjee expressed sorrow for not only the CPI-M supporters but also for the anti-SEZ supporters who lost their lives in the violence that erupted in Nandigram earlier in the year.

"I feel sorry for everyone. I express my sorrow to not only the CPI-M supporters but also the opposition supporters who have died. The state government takes responsibility to compensate for all this. I appeal to the opposition and the CPI-M workers for no more violence anymore," Buddhadeb said.

Buddhadeb reiterated that till there is a concensus, the state government will not lay claim to any land for the SEZs.

He also regretted March 14 police firing in Nandigram saying no government in a civilised country can send police to kill people.

On Wednesday, Buddhadeb visited Nandigram for the first time after violence in March and addressed a rally where he appealed to both the groups to refrain from violence. The CM is expected to address another rally in Tamluk.

The CM also asked CPI-M leaders not to "misbehave" with opposition activists but to be polite with them and added that a special committee has been formed to prepare a comprehensive package for Nandigram's development.

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Taslima welcome to WB, but Centre must ensure security: Basu

Towing a slightly different line, Marxist patriarch Jyoti Basu on Tuesday said controversial Bangladeshi writer Taslima Nasreen can return here if she chooses to, but the Centre will have to ensure her security.

"If she wants to return to Kolkata or elsewhere in West Bengal, she is welcome. But the Centre will have to ensure her security," he told reporters after a felicitation programme at his Salt Lake residence.

He is the first CPM leader to speak in sympathetic tone for the exiled writer ever since trouble broke out in Kolkata last month over her writings with a number of leaders having adoped a rather cold attitude on her return to the city.

Recalling that he had met Nasreen earlier on several occasions, Basu said, "I read in the newspapers that she is very disappointed about having to stay outside Kolkata. Now let us see what the Centre says."

Stating that he had read Nasreen's book 'Dwikhondito' which sparked off violence in the city last month, the former West Bengal chief minister said, "The state government has already banned the book. What she has written there about the Prophet Mohammad and the Koran cannot be accepted by any Muslim."

Basu, however, was also critical of those who indulged in the violence last month after which she was whisked away to Jaipur, the Rajsthan House in Delhi and then to an undisclosed location in the national capital.

"Those who indulge in such violence think that they will be closer to God if they kill people," he said.

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CPM glorifies massacre accused

MIDNAPORE: Tapan Ghosh and Sukur Ali - alleged masterminds of the Chhoto Angaria massacre - are still "bir senanis" (brave warriors) for CPM, the party that runs the government in Bengal. This, despite the Buddhadeb Bhattacharjee government having slapped seven criminal charges on the duo.
And, CPM's West Midnapore district secretary, Dipak Sarkar, has no qualms about it. "The party conference is our highest forum. Delegates there showered this honour upon Tapan Ghosh and Sukur Ali," he said on Thursday.
Dipak Sarkar included Tapan and Sukur in the party's newly elected West Midnapore district committee, despite the fact that the two have been behind bars since November 10.
"We have reviewed their performance at the district conference and found that they are worthy of the honour," Sarkar said, days after CPM minister Sushanta Ghosh met Tapan and Sukur in Midnapore jail and assured them that the district party unit stood behind them.
The duo had been arrested near Nandigram on November 10, raising speculation that they were involved in the recent Red violence there.
On Thursday, some delegates at the conference questioned the party's decision to send the duo to Nandigram and insisted that their names be dropped from the district committee to save the party's image.

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Mamata's phone being tapped: TC leader

Leader of the Opposition in the West Bengal Assembly Partha Chatterjee on Tuesday alleged that telephones of party chief Mamata Banerjee and other senior leaders were being tapped on the instruction of the state government.

Raising a point of order after the Question Hour, Chatterjee alleged that a senior official at Bhawani Bhawan (the state CID headquarter) was monitoring the tapping of telephones of Banerjee and other senior leaders of the party.

He said it was a serious issue and an attempt to curb the political activities of the Opposition.
Chatterjee said Chief Minister Buddhadeb Bhattacharjee, who is also in charge of the Home (police) department, should summon the officer and seek an explanation.

Speaker Hasim Abdul Halim said the telephone department was controlled by the Central government.

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W.Bengal CM admited Nandigram was politcal and administretrative failure

West Bengal Chief Minister Buddhadeb Bhattacharya has admitted that Nandigram was a political and administrative failure.However, he said it isn't a setback for restoring investors' confidence in the state.

The Chief Minister also regretted his comment that the violent takeover of Nandigram was the CPM cadre paying back rivals in the same coin. He said he should not have made those remarks.
''We paid back in their own coin, I said. But I should not have said this because now now I want peace, peace for all, peace for all sections,'' he told a press conference in the capital, prefacing his remarks with the comment that what he said that day may have been lost in translation.

He was asked whether he regretted the ''tit for tat'' remarks he made last month in the context of CPI(M) cadre recapturing Nandigram, which had long been a battle ground of the ruling party men against workers of Trinamool Congress, a land protection committee and suspected Maoists.

Then switching on to Bengali, the Chief Minister said ''Bengal has committed a mistake, it was like tit for tat''. Bhattacharya's remarks then had come under all-round attack and he had justified them the next day saying he was not not only Chief Minister but also a CPI(M) worker.

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Kolkata peaceful, Army stages flag march

The city remained peaceful for the second day on Friday as Army patrolled with police parts of central Kolkata that were hit by violence during Wednesday's shutdown call given by a minority group seeking expulsion of Bangladeshi writer Taslima Nasreen and protesting against Nandigram violence.

Four columns of Army comprising 360 personnel conducted flag march and jointly patrolled with city police Moulali, Mullickbazar, Ripon Street, Park Circus, Topsia, Beniapukur and adjacent areas throughout last night, Commissioner of Police, Goutam Mohan Chakraborty said.
He said no incident was reported from the areas and there were no arrests.

To a question, he said since morning Army has been kept on a standby and city police would soon review the entire situation and apprise higher authorities in the state.
"The state government will take a final decision on how long the army will stay and whether it is to be withdrawn in phases," the CP said.

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Under fire over Taslima talk, Bose eats his words

The West Bengal government faced further embarrassment on Thursday as Left front Chairman Biman Bose was forced to eat his words on Taslima Nasreen a day after commenting that the Bangladeshi writer should leave if her presence is causing trouble.


Bose today said he was rectifying Wednesday's statement on Taslima on behalf of his party and any decision on extending or cancelling her visa can only be taken by the Centre.
''The right to grant or cancel a visa des not lie with the state government, only the Indian government can do that,'' said Biman Bose.


The author's visa expires in February next year.
Taslima has not spoken since Wednesday's clashes but earlier this year, shortly after she was roughed up by protestors in Hyderabad, she had gone to release the Telugu translation of her book Shodh.


Speaking to NDTV about her reasons for wanting to live in Kolkata, Taslima said: ''I am getting so much support and solidarity from people that I am grateful to them. I want to live here peacefully. I want to write peacefully and I want to feel at home.''


Kolkata meanwhile is slowly getting back to normal a day after violent clashes. Public transport is back on the roads and all schools, colleges and offices have re-opened.
It was a tense night on Wednesday with several parts of the city under curfew. However, no further clashes were reported during the night.


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CPM fails to understand Bengal, Muslims

The ruling CPI(M) in West Bengal on Wednesday night said controversial Bangladeshi writer Taslima Nasreen should "leave the state" if her stay disturbs the peace
.
"I don't want to speak elaborately on the role played by the Centre on Taslima Nasreen's stay in West Bengal. But if her stay creates a problem for peace, she should leave the state," CPI(M) state secretary Biman Bose told reporters.

He said when two Union ministers sought Chief Minister Buddhadeb Bhattacharjee's view on the issue, he had told them that if the Centre thought it advisable for her stay, she could do so.

Bose's comments came after the city witnessed large-scale violence when a mob attacked the police injuring 35 personnel besides torching and damaging vehicles during a three-hour shutdown called by a minority fringe group in protest against the Nandigram violence.

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Mamata’s convoy stopped near Nandigram

The tension in West Bengal over Nandigram has spilled over to New Delhi as well. The CPI-M's two-day Politburo meeting begins in the Capital on Sunday.

However, West Bengal Chief Minister Buddhadeb Bhattacharya is unlikely to attend the meeting given the volatile situation in Nandigram.

While the politburo will debate developments in the strife torn state, the political resolution for the upcoming party congress will also be discussed.
The Politburo will also be briefed on the talks the Left has had with the Government on the Indo-US civilian nuclear deal.

Even as fresh violence claimed two lives in Nandigram on Saturday after a day of relative calm, Trinamool Congress leader Mamata Banerjee announced her resignation from Parliament and called for an indefinite statewide stir to “paralyse West Bengal” from Monday.

Mamata announced her resignation as MP in protest against the alleged “massacre” in Nandigram. She said the letter of resignation had been sent to the Prime Minister and a copy has been marked to the Lok Sabha Speaker.

Meanwhile, a thousand Central Reserve Police Force (CRPF) personnel have been asked to head for West Bengal. The Centre’s decision to send them followed a request from the Chief Minister.
The Congress also announced a 24-hour strike in the State on Monday.

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Bengali family keeps tradition alive

Bengalis are celebrating Navami, the last day of Durga puja on Saturday.
The Haatkhola Dutta Bari in north Kolkata has a unique way of celebrating Durga Puja that dates back to over two centuries.

The bonedi or joint family can take pride in keeping alive a tradition of worship that is 250 years long. 'I am the 28th generation. It's an honour. It's definitely an honour for a long long time we are performing it. We are trying to maintain the theme of the Puja with all its intricacies with all its which has been followed by generations with all our might,'' said Sushanta Dutta, a member of the family

''Many have moved away but during the Pujas we all meet up and it's a very happy occasion when we relive a tradition that is more than 250 years old,'' said Deepali Dutta, another member.

The tradition dates back to 1794 when Jagat Ram Dutta, the Diwan of the British East India Company and patriarch of the Haatkhola Dutta Bari, held the Durga Pujas for the first time.
At the Haatkhola Duttabari puja there is no boli or animal sacrifice.

''You have seen our Puja Thakur. The lion is in the shape of a horse. The Barwari Pujas are not like that. The speciality in our structure is the chalchitra in the background. There are three separate chalchitras with specific drawings which we maintain year to year,'' said Alok Dutta.

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400 Year puja in Lalgarh (wesr medmapore)

LALGARH (WEST MIDNAPORE): This is a place where even policemen fear to tread after dark. Not so during the Pujas. This is when the ‘Rajas’ of Lalgarh take over from Maoists. The pomp and show is no more and the Durga idol looks different, but local people are ready to die to be a part of the show that is nearly 400 years old.

The story goes that Lal Singh and his brother Ram Singh were messengers of Nawab Aliwardi Khan. "Pleased with their excellent work, the nawab gifted them large tracts of land where the brothers built their palaces and took the title of Raja," says Prodosh Kumar Sahosroy, descendent of Lal Singh.

Lal Singh’s original palace was at Sankhakula (now Sankhasini), on the banks of the Kansai near Lalgarh. One day, a sankhari (conchshell artisan), asked for money from Lal Singh as he said Singh’s daughter had worn sankhas made by him. Lal Singh had no daughter but decided to play along. He accompanied the sankhari to the banks of the Kansai and saw what he thought was goddess Durga with new sankhas on her hands. He immediately paid the man and ordered that Durga puja be celebrated every year

Courtesy:The Times of India
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CBI booked the case against father-in-law of Rizwanur Rehman

The CBI on Friday registered a murder case against Ashok Todi, the industrialist father-in-law of Rizwanur Rehman, a computer professional who died under mysterious circumstances in Kolkata recently. On October 16, Calcutta High Court had ordered a CBI probe into the "unnatural death" that also led to the removal of city police chief Prasun Mukherjee on Wednesday amid charges of making it look like a case of suicide.

A team led by a CBI joint director will investigate the circumstances that led to Rizwanur’s death. The team is expected to visit the rail tracks near Dum Dum where Rizwanur’s body was found on September 21, far from his home in Park Circus. A case under section 302 (murder) has been lodged against Todi and others.

Rizwanur, who used to teach computer graphics, had married Todi’s daughter Priyanka on August 18, apparently against the wishes of her well-connected family and his death a month later evoked nationwide outrage. The youth’s mother Kishwar Jahan and brother Rukbanur later moved the HC, seeking a high-level inquiry into his death, insisting they had no faith in the state government, especially since Rizwanur had been allegedly threatened by senior Kolkata police officials to separate from Priyanka.

Courtesy:The Times of India
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Singur ripples follow SC verdict

The recent Supreme Court ban on acquisition of “good agricultural land” has sent ripples through the far-flung villages of Beraberi, Bajemelia and Khasherberi, where large tracts of agricultural land have been acquired to make way for the Tata small car factory.
SC verdict, which stated that governments should not acquire land for a private company under the guise of public purpose, came in handy for Krishi Jami Raksha Committee (KJRC) that took out a rally on Thursday at Beraberi Purbapara to whip up sentiments against the state government.

Tata Motors officials have taken care to assuage feelings by flagging off its initiative to support the cause of primary and secondary school education in Singur. On Thursday, the company provided desks, benches, chairs, tables, cupboards and electrical fittings in addition to educational and sports materials to a primary school at Ruidaspara in Beraberi.

KJRC though was not bothered by this. On Thursday, its convener Becharam Manna was back in Singur, telling the villagers that the KJRC stand had been vindicated by none other than the Supreme Court. So, he wants the government to return agricultural land at Bajemelia, Beraberi and Khasherberi .
“The government has acquired fertile plots under the guise of public purpose. I am not talking of areas such as Joymollah where the land is not fertile, but the SC verdict holds true for vast stretches of Gopalnagar, Beraberi and Khaserberi, which have small and marginal farmers,” said Manik Das, a marginal farmer from Gopalnagar.

Courtesy:The Times of India
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