The horror in West Bengal continues: 13-year-old girl sexually harassed in Howrah hospital

In another shock from West Bengal, a 13-year-old girl was sexually assaulted at a hospital in Howrah when she went for a check-up, India Today reported on Sunday. The girl was allegedly sexually assaulted in the CT room of Howrah Sadar Hospital.

In a tweet, BJP IT chief Amit Malviya said four cases of sexual abuse were reported from West Bengal on the first day of this month, after massive protests erupted in the region over the alleged brutal rape and murder of a trainee doctor at RG Kar Medical College and Hospital in Kolkata.

Citing the first case, Malviya said a nurse was sexually harassed at Llambazar Swasthya Kendra in Birbhum. “A man named Sheikh Abbasuddin forcibly groped her private parts while she was on night duty. Mamata Banerjee will blame the nurse for working at night instead of making workplaces safe for women,” he said.

In another case, Malviya said a minor was allegedly raped in Bhajanghat, Krishnaganj in Nadia. “In Madhyamgram, a TMC panchayat member raped a minor who was in second standard. Last night, a girl was sexually assaulted in the CT room of Howrah Sadar Hospital,” he said.

Attacking the chief minister, the BJP leader said West Bengal was the most unsafe state for women under Mamata Banerjee. “She has done nothing to enforce the stringent rules and set up fast track courts to punish accused in rape and POCSO cases. She is an absolute disaster as chief minister and must resign,” he said.

India Today reported that a man was arrested for allegedly harassing the duty nurse at a government hospital in Birbhum. The incident occurred when the nurse was administering saline infusion to the man, who was brought to the health centre on a stretcher due to high fever.

According to the nurse's report to the police, the patient touched her inappropriately while she was caring for him. The nurse further claimed that the patient not only touched her inappropriately but also used abusive words towards her.

The hospital authorities immediately called the police who arrived at the scene and arrested the accused. A formal written complaint was lodged at Ilambazar police station.

“A male patient was admitted with fever during the night shift. As recommended by the doctors, I was about to give him saline solution when he misbehaved. He touched me and used foul language. We do not feel safe working here as the safety precautions are not adequate. How can a patient behave like this?” said the nurse while describing the incident.

Dr Masidul Hasan, who was on duty at the health centre on the night of the incident, said that around 8:30 pm, a patient named Abbas Uddin arrived from Chotochak village with fever. “He started misbehaving immediately after his arrival. After some clinical examinations, we advised him to give injections and infusions. When the nurse tried to give him the saline solution, the patient behaved violently and harassed her by touching her inappropriately.”