Activist Tapan Ghosh unfolds Bengali girls’ plight

Chicago: An activist from India, Tapan Ghosh, often described as a lone warrior seeking to rescue young Bengali girls from the clutches of sex offenders, was in Chicago last week. He briefed a group of Indian Americans at Gayatri Mandir in Addison, a northwest suburb of Chicago, over the sordid state of affairs in some parts of West Bengal.

He said that it was extremely painful to describe the condition of Hindu girls in some Muslim dominated areas in West Bengal. Rampant violence against men and cruelty towards women including rape have become commonplace, but unfortunately the West Bengal State government, headed by a woman Mamata Banerjee, has turned its face the other way apparently because of political considerations.

The government is ignoring the cries of these people obviously because she would not like to offend powerful mafias and Muslim coteries to retain her power grip. This is at the cost of the modesty of Hindu women. Both the consistent violence and killing of democratic institutions like voting and influence of Communism continues unabated in spite of the name Trinamool Congress Mamata baptized her political party with.

While talking to the media, Tapan Ghosh urged that it was important that Indians wake up to the plight of the West Bengal Hindus and support them to have law and order established and preserved. He added that strangely the media was oblivious to these heart-rending matters which embolden the violent lawbreakers to keep committing the offences unchallenged.

To begin with, Yelamanchi, a prominent member and activist of the community, introduced Tapan Ghosh commending his selfless work to support Hindus of West Bengal and requested community members to help him in every which way to pursue his mission.

Tapan Ghosh founded his NGO Hindu Samhati in 2008. It regularly monitors and reports violence against Hindus in West Bengal. Strange as it may appear in India, Hindus, in some place or the other, continue to be the victims of violence. Almost a thousand years of violence, including rape and kidnapping of women, particularly young, had been common under Islamic rule, excepting during the period of enlightened rulers like Akbar the Great. Hindus remained victims of cruelty and repression.

Hindu Samhati also works with government agencies for proper education, protection and to ensure remedies to the Hindu populace as per the prevailing law of the land. Within only seven years since its founding, Hindu Samhati has become the icon of hope to Hindus in West Bengal. Whenever they are attacked the Samhati fights for their cause irrespective of their political leanings, caste and class.

Upon report of any attack, the Samhati brings the attention of concerned authorities and compels them to take action and make the people aware of the incident and reach the victims to safety. It has strong presence in 12 districts in West Bengal and also can influence Hindu votes in about 70 to 80 assembly constituencies in those districts.

Media and political parties have always been silent over the jihadi threats and attack on Hindus. The scenario has now not only changed but is being publicized and receives stiff resistance from the Hindu Samhati.

Surendra Ullal