Rise in Rage: Kolkata Students March to Condemn Assault and Murder of Priyanka Reddy

KOLKATA: A march organised by the Presidency University Students’ Union saw large participation on December 2.

Students marched down the streets asking people to rise in rage, as more and more Priyanka Reddy-s fall prey to sexual violence, rape, and murder with every passing day.

The rally started at 5.30 pm from the Presidency campus main gate to Esplanade, where the road was blocked for a while as women voiced their stories and protests.

The slogan rang out: “Priyanka hum Sharminda Hain, Tere Qaatil Zinda Hain” (Priyanka we are ashamed, your killers are still alive). Some students demanded the death sentence for the rapists.

“How much shame will finally provide security and justice for the women of this country? In these times of ‘Beti Bachao’, who is keeping count of how many women are falling prey to sexual violence every day?” asked Debopriya Adhikary, a student at Presidency University.

“Our march was not against this isolated event, but against the thriving misogyny and rape culture that prevails in our world, and which every woman is a victim to. It should stop, it has become a daily routine in our nation,” she added.

The president of the students’ union, Mimosa Ghorai, said “The government is doing nothing to ensure sensitisation, or to provide justice for the victims. In fact, many of them have been known to be involved in such crimes themselves.

“We the Presidency University Students’ Union demand safety, security and respect for all individuals, no matter what their age, sex, caste or class identity.

“No more Nirbhaya-s. No more Priyanka-s. No one wants to be India’s daughter like that,” said Ghorai.