Rape victim's father alleges police threat

The father of the 16-year-old gang rape victim who died in a city hospital after attempting suicide, today alleged that Kolkata Police asked him to leave the state and return to Bihar with his daughter's body.
"The police officials last night threatened me and asked me to leave the state and return to Bihar with the body. The police officials and some local toughs also threatened that if I did not they would stop me from driving my taxi," said the victim's father, who is a taxi driver.
There was a tussle between the Left parties and Kolkata Police last night over the cremation of the body of the girl, who died in a city hospital yesterday due to injuries sustained when attempting to set herself on fire at her home on December 23.

The Left leadership will meet Governor M K Narayanan during the day over the issue and submit a deputation, party sources said.
The girl's father, who is close to the CITU, said it was decided by the family and the trade union that the body would be kept in Peace Haven mortuary in the city and a condolence rally would be taken out during the day.
But the body was taken away forcefully by the police for cremation while being taken to the mortuary late last night without the family's consent, the girl's father and CITU sources said.
"The police took away the body forcefully and tried to cremate it at Nimatala Ghat crematorium but could not as the death certificate was with the girl's father. After the news spread we too rushed to the crematorium and protested forcing the police to retreat," CPI(M) state secretariat member Rabin Deb told PTI.

"The police gave the excuse that the condolence rally with the body cannot be allowed as there is dearth of policemen due to New Year celebrations," he alleged.