Bengali protest songs rent the air amid stir against Kolkata doctor rape-murder at Jantar Mantar

Undeterred by rain on Wednesday evening, which otherwise disrupted business as usual for many in the Capital, a small group of people gathered at Jantar Mantar to protest the rape of a junior doctor at RG Kar Medical College in Kolkata. Apart from the usual sloganeering, some sang Bengali protest songs, others expressed solidarity by performing a nritya natak and some played harmonium and tabla.

The protest was organised by the Pandara Road Durga Puja Samiti. “Our demand is for a safe society for everyone… We want the investigation to be started afresh and for the actual culprits to be caught. We want Kolkata to remain the ‘City of Joy’ and not become the ‘City of Bhoy’ (fear),” said Atashi Chowdhury, the general secretary of the Puja Samiti.

Utpal Ghosh, a businessman and resident of CR Park, said, “When we heard of the incident in Kolkata, we were completely shocked. The fact that it happened in her workplace is what shocks me the most. I feel scared for my sisters and daughters now…we came here because we want justice to be served to the affected family.”

Mitali Ghosh, another resident of CR Park, was also a part of the protest. “I think we came here because it’s high time women are given the respect that they’re owed. We saw what happened in Kolkata…the city has come to a complete stop because people want justice. It cannot go on like this…the kind of thinking that some men have needs to be addressed, otherwise we’ll crumble as a society,” she said.