Woman scribe molested, assaulted at Sodepur Rly Stn subway

Kolkata: A 23-year-old woman journalist was allegedly molested and assaulted by a group of youths inside the pedestrian subway of Sodepur Railway Station on Wednesday night (Navami).

The incident occurred around 9:20 pm when the woman, a resident of Sodepur, was returning home alone after meeting a friend. She alleged that seven to eight men, conversing in Hindi, followed her into the subway, hurled abuses, and molested her. When she resisted and slapped one of them, the group allegedly attacked her with punches and slaps before fleeing.

Narrating the ordeal on social media, she wrote: “I glanced back once and kept walking. Suddenly, one of them put his hand on my shoulder. I walked faster, but he caught me from behind in a tight grip. I turned, grabbed his collar, and slapped him twice. That is when the whole group pounced on me and started hitting me.”

Despite the subway being crowded with Puja revellers, no one reportedly came forward to help. “No one stepped forward, which is the most alarming part. They hit me several times before fleeing right in front of everyone, but not one person tried to stop them,” she said.

The woman also alleged initial apathy from Government Railway Police (GRP) personnel at the station. However, she later received full cooperation. On Thursday, she lodged an FIR with Belghoria GRP under Dum Dum GRPS jurisdiction, which she said responded promptly. “Here, I received help, and they immediately began the investigation. I want to place complete trust in the investigation,” she added.

GRP sources said the survivor was shown CCTV footage from multiple cameras and was able to identify two of the miscreants. Investigators are now working to trace them.