Tortured with iron rods in Gujarat, West Bengal boy fights for life back to home

Time of India

a day ago

KALNA: After a video showing inhuman torture being meted out to a minor in Gujarat's Rajkot went viral, Bengal government has stepped in to take care of the medical and legal expenses of the 10-year-old Kalna boy purportedly seen in the clip.
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The boy from East Burdwan, allegedly beaten up brutally by his employer with iron rods, is admitted at a Kalna hospital. His father has lodged a complaint with Kalna SDO and cops have started a probe.
In the complaint to SDO Shubham Aggarwal, the victim's father stated that he had sent his son to work at an imitation ornament factory owned by Hapal Mollah two years ago. "My boy complained that he was often assaulted. The employer didn't even pay him regularly," the boy's mother said.
He had to be given IV drips and blood at the hospital, she said. Rajkot resident Molla had come to the family's home two years ago. "Due to extreme poverty, I was compelled to let my son go.
Since then, he has been subjected to torture and beatings. My son's body is covered with scars. Last Sunday, a man named Kalu Ram brought him to Howrah station and handed him to us. We brought him home and immediately took him to the hospital, where he was admitted.
We demand strict punishment for the culprit," the mother said.
Kalna BDO (I) Supratik Saha told TOI: "The SDO has instructed an inquiry and we have arranged for the boy's treatment."
Police said that they started a case against the employer for causing intentional grievous hurt using a dangerous weapon per Section 118 (2) of BNS. The maximum punishment for this is life imprisonment. Mollah has also been charged under the Juvenile Justice Act.
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In a statement, Trinamool slammed Gujarat's BJP govt for enabling such exploitation and dehumanising treatment. "Bengal govt, led by CM Mamata Banerjee, has assured that necessary steps are being taken to ensure the boy's care and protection," the party posted on X, adding, "In PM Narendra Modi's double engine state Gujarat, child labour is not only perpetuated but also accompanied by dehumanising treatment! In their contempt for Bengal, BJP is openly condoning these heinous acts against our people.
CM Mamata Banerjee-led Bengal govt is taking all necessary measures to ensure his well-being and safety."
TMC Rajya Sabha MP Samirul Biswas, also the chairperson of Bengal Migrant Workers' Welfare Board, said the panel was concerned with such incidents on the rise. "If needed, we will provide compensation to the boy," he said.