Kolkata: The 18-year-old boy, his father and the youngster’s 19-year-old friend remain withdrawn inside their home, too ashamed and scared to set foot in the neighbourhood, days after they were paraded naked at Khudiram Pally in Sarsuna, Behala, at gunpoint last Sunday.The mere thought of walking the short distance from Sabuj Park to Khudiram Pally fills them with embarrassment and dread, they say. They live in constant fear that some of the accused, who were still roaming freely, could target them again. “They stripped us naked and marched us down the road, yet no one spoke up. I was so overwhelmed with shame, humiliation and fear that I felt I lost the meaning of being alive. It was a bike mechanic, Sujoy, who saved us from further disgrace,” the father said.According to the complaint, the three were forced at gunpoint to strip near a canal in Khudiram Pally on Sunday evening as “punishment” for the 18-year-old allegedly kissing a 13-year-old girl, purportedly his girlfriend. As the three were marched naked down the street, residents watched and some filmed the scene.Some of the residents claimed they were too frightened of the girl’s “influential family” to intervene, while some others claimed they had mistaken the older man for a mentally unstable person until they saw the youngsters, also in the same condition. Many did admit that while they were shocked, none protested. The bike mechanic, Sujoy Haldar, had earlier told TOI that he was the first to go to their rescue, pulling the youngsters into his garage and then bringing the father inside. Haldar and his mechanics gave the victims their clothes, pressured those filming to retrieve the victims’ belongings from the home of the accused and helped the three reach the police station.Four persons—the girl’s parents, maternal uncle and another associate—have been arrested. Police are looking for at least three other suspects.
