![\"\"](\"https:\/\/static.toiimg.com\/thumb\/msid-77170955,imgsize-364326,width-400,resizemode-4\/77170955.jpg\" "\\"Representational")
<\/div>\n<\/div>\n<\/section>\nRepresentational image<\/span><\/p>\n KOLKATA: A 23-year-old effeminate man has lodged a complaint before Bidhannagar police commissioner alleging that he was tortured and harassed by cops in civil clothes outside City Centre II shopping mall and was forced to spend a night at the Narayanpur police station last Monday where he claimed he was molested, beaten up and verbally abused through the night by cops.
Acting on the man\u2019s complaint, cops have started an enquiry into the case. \u201cWe have started an enquiry to find out what had happened exactly,\u201d said a senior officer of Bidhannagar Commissionerate.
Another officer however said few days ago, Narayanpur police had busted a sex racket comprising of women and crossdressers and that was the reason the youth was stopped for questioning to find if he had any involvement with the gang. The officer however said he had no information if cops had assaulted the youth.
According to the complaint, the youth said on July 20, he was walking back home from a friend\u2019s house around 9pm when he was stopped by a group of policemen in civil clothes near the shopping mall and the cops allegedly started abusing him. \u201cI am used to taunts from society and thus I resisted which angered the men and one of them slapped me. Another person held me by my hair and started pulling me towards their bike. Since they were not in uniform I even thought they might be goons. I screamed for help and when people came rushing, the men said I was a thief,\u201d said the final year political science student.
The cops then allegedly called for a police jeep and took him to the police station, where he claimed he was further abused. \u201cInside the jeep I was touched inappropriately in my private parts and all was a joke to them. At the police station, they started another round of sexual abuse including pushing stick to my back, asking if I have penis and if I have breast. I couldn’t believe that it was happening to me in 2020 that too in Kolkata,\u201d the youth said.
The youth further wrote in his complaint that cops had snatched his phone, checked his private pictures and abused him as \u201chomo and chhakka\u201d. The youth said, the
dreaded night came to an end after a family friend reached the police station in the morning and he was just let go around noon.
\u201cAs a law abiding and proud Indian, who takes pride in his identity, in the constitution, in the Supreme Court and in the disciplined Police Force, I cannot stay silent since I did nothing wrong. Rather I have been wronged. Given this I urge you to investigate, identify and punish these people and grant me justice,\u201d the youth wrote in his complaint.
Several gender right bodies criticised the incident and held online demonstrations seeking justice for the youth. \u201cAccording to Trans Persons Protection act 2020 harassing one based on their gender behaviour is a criminal offence amounting to imprisonment. Based on what the youth has said it is a serious offence made by a section of police. It is important that higher officials take cognizance and help bundling confidence among gender and sexuality minorities in police and administration,\u201d said Bappaditya Mukherjee, a gender rights activist. <\/p>\n<\/div>\n