West Bengal: ‘Long list of crimes against women … ‘: Facing heat over Manipur, BJP targets opposition | India News

NEW DELHI: The horrific incident in Manipur, where two tribal women were paraded naked, has sparked huge outrage across the country, leading to a heated political confrontation between the ruling BJP and opposition parties.

The two women are alleged to have been sexually assaulted before being set free by a mob. A 26-second video of the incident surfaced on Wednesday.
The BJP on Saturday took potshots at Congress a day after Rajasthan chief minister Ashok Gehlot sacked Rajendra Gudha as minister of state after he criticised his own government over the crimes against women in the state.

“The way we have failed to provide security to women in Rajasthan and atrocities on women have increased, instead of raising the issue of Manipur, we should introspect,” Gudha had said in the assembly.
‘Long list of heinous crimes against women in Rajasthan, Bengal, Bihar but opposition playing politics over Manipur’
Addressing a press conference at the BJP headquarters, minister for information and broadcasting Anurag Thakur referred to some cases of crime against women registered in Rajasthan, Bihar and West Bengal to hit out at opposition parties.

“The incidents of crime against women have increased in some states of the country and no action was taken against this in several states. What happened in Begusarai is in front of us, but CM Nitish Kumar did not speak a single word about this. Rajasthan has become the number one state in crime against women. A total of 1.09 lakhs incidents of crime against women in the state in last 4 years and 22% rape cases in India are from Rajasthan,” Thakur said.
On the sacking of a Rajasthan minister Rajendra Gudha, he said that on the instructions of Congress leaders Sonia Gandhi and Rahul Gandhi, chief minister Ashok Gehlot sacked the minister for expressing concern over crimes against women in the state.
Rajasthan CM Gehlot says PM Modi visiting poll-bound states but not Manipur
Gehlot launched a scathing attack on Prime Minister Narendra Modi, accusing him of refraining from visiting violence-hit Manipur.
“For the first time, I have seen that a Prime Minister is visiting Karnataka, Rajasthan and other places for elections, but not Manipur. It is his government in Manipur, just imagine what would he have said if it was a Congress government there,” CM Gehlot said while speaking to the media at his residence in Jaipur.

The Senior Congress leader also criticised PM Modi for allegedly making a reference to incidents in Rajasthan and Chhattisgarh while commenting on a video of women being paraded naked and molested in Manipur and said that Modi’s remark has hurt the sentiments of Rajasthan.
“The way Prime Minister Narendra Modi said that the CMs of Rajasthan and Chhattisgarh should take care of the law and order situation in their state, it has hurt the sentiments of Rajasthan,” Gehlot said.
‘Two women stripped, beaten in Bengal’s Malda’
The BJP also targetted Mamata Banerjee-led West Bengal goverment on Saturday and alleged that two tribal women were “stripped naked, tortured and beaten mercilessly” in Malda a few days ago while police remained a “mute spectator.”
BJP’s IT department head Amit Malviya today took to Twitter to post a purported video, that has surfaced on social media, of the incident, which he claimed took place on July 19 in Pakua Hat, a weekly market, of Bamangola Police Station in Malda.

“The horror continues in West Bengal. Two Tribal women were stripped naked, tortured and beaten mercilessly, while police remained a mute spectator in Pakua Hat area of Bamangola Police Station, Malda,” Malviya tweeted.
“The horrific incident took place on the morning of 19th July. The women belonged to socially marginalised community and had a frenzied mob baying for her blood…,” Malviya who is the party’s BJP in-charge of West Bengal said.
Attacking the state’s chief minister Mamata Banerjee, Malviya posted, “It had all the making of a tragedy that should have ‘broken’ Mamata Banerjee’s heart and she, instead of merely outraging, could have acted, since she is also the home minister of Bengal…” Malviya said.
TMC says BJP ‘politicising’ issue
The ruling Mamata Banerjee-led Trinamool Congress in its response said that the BJP was needlessly politicising the issue and the women were caught stealing, which prompted outraged by the locals.
Women and child development minister of West Bengal Shashi Panja said, “There is absolutely no need to politicise the Malda incident. It was a case of theft, where the two ladies tried to steal something from the market. A group of women tried to take law and order into their hands and started beating them. However, the police reached the spot. A case has been registered and police are investigating the matter.”
“It has nothing to do with politics though we have taken suo motu of the incident,” Panja said.
Opposition MPs to hold protest in Parliament complex on Monday
Amid the stalemate in Parliament over holding a debate on Manipur violence, MPs of various opposition parties have planned a protest on Monday near Mahatma Gandhi’s statue in the Parliament complex to press for the prime minister’s statement on the issue in both houses.
After the meeting at 10 AM on Monday, July 24, the leaders will hold a protest near the Gandhi statue before entering both houses.
The government has accused the opposition of running away from a debate on the all-important issue and has questioned their seriousness towards it.