It was beyond midnight when an official of West Bengal Commission for Women got a call from a Salt Lake resident, asking him to rescue an elderly woman who was pushed out of her home by her daughter-in-law allegedly after being tortured for more than two years. The 72-year-old woman, wife of a former IAS officer, was rescued from a south Kolkata footpath and had to be rushed to a hospital for an urgent treatment for the physical assaults she met allegedly during her struggle at her own home. “She had to be hospitalised for more than a week. She was traumatised both physically and mentally and had not a single penny. We took care of all her expenses and reinstated her rights at her home,” a senior official at the WBCW said.

It took another eight months for the woman to get back to her late husband’s house and regain her rights. However, only a few among the several victims of domestic violence are as lucky as her. Their plight is not addressed following which they start compromising with perpetrators. For them there is a new ray of hope. The WBCW, with the Centre’s initiative to help tortured women victims with legal assistance, medical-help as well as counselling, is planning a crisis centre at Barasat in North 24 Parganas district.

Click Here To Read More