Woman Gang-Raped In West Bengal, Brutalised With Iron Rods

Kolkata: In a chilling throwback to the horrific Nirbhaya case, a mentally challenged tribal woman has been brutally gang-raped in north Bengal. The 30-year-old was brutalized with iron rods, her intestines spilled out and she was left to die in a forested area at Kusumondi in South Dinajpur district, police and hospital sources said.

The gang-rape took place on Saturday night but the woman was spotted by passers-by only on Sunday afternoon. The police were informed and she was taken to a government  hospital in Raiganj.

After a three-hour surgery there, she was sent to Malda government hospital for further treatment. She is currently in the critical care unit in a serious condition.

Two men, Akalu Barman and Ram Prasad Sharma, both of them locals, have been arrested so far. 

West Bengal Chief Minister Mamata Banerjee, who was in Malda on Tuesday for administrative meetings, went to the hospital to enquire about the woman's health.

According to the police, the woman was married but had left her husband who lived in Bihar. She lived alone at Kusumondi and was returning from a village fair when she was attacked.

On December 16, 2012, a 23-year-old paramedic student, who came to be known as Nirbhaya, was gang-raped by six men in a moving bus in south Delhi. She was assaulted with an iron rod and her intestines were pulled out. She died at a hospital in Singapore 13 days later. After mass outrage and public protests over the horrific incident, the government came up with tougher provisions to curb sexual offences.