Hindu widow survives attempted gang rape and physical assault by Muslim men in West Bengal
West Bengal, India 
3 May, 2025
Case Summary
In Anantapur village, under the jurisdiction of Gazole Police Station in Malda district, West Bengal, a 40-year-old Hindu widow was the victim of an attempted gang rape by three Muslim men, identified as her neighbours. The accused also physically assaulted her. Hinduphobia Tracker contacted local police, who confirmed that the victim was a 40-year-old Hindu woman. Media reports state that she is the mother of two sons who work outside the district. The accused have been named as Majnu Rahman, Ohidur Rahman, and Rafikul Islam. The incident occurred when the woman was home alone, and she stepped out of the house to bring in her goats and a calf. During this time, the three perpetrators dragged her forcibly into a nearby maize field and attempted to rape her. When she resisted, they brutally assaulted her physically. Hearing her screams, local residents rushed to the scene and intervened to save her. The community apprehended the three accused and thrashed them; one managed to escape while the other two perpetrators were handed over to police. The Hindu victim was taken to the Gazole State General Hospital for treatment and was reported to be severely traumatised by the violence. The two apprehended accused were admitted to Malda Medical College Hospital for injuries sustained during the public thrashing. Gazole MLA Chinmoy Deb Barman visited the survivor in the hospital, condemned the incident, and stated, “The incident is highly deplorable, and we demand strict punishment for the culprits.” Police registered a case following the incident. According to media reports, the police arrested the first two accused and produced them before the Malda court. However, as per Hinduphobia Tracker's conversation with the police, all three accused were arrested.
Why it is Hate Crime ?
In this case, a Hindu woman was a victim of attempted gang rape by three Muslim men. This could potentially be a crime motivated by religious profiling, as it has been observed that in many cases, Muslim perpetrators target Hindu women and girls due to inherent animosity towards Hindus, particularly Hindu women. Hindu women and girls are very vulnerable to crimes like rape and sexual assault at the hands of Muslim men. However, it is also possible that the crime was one of opportunity, where the Hindu woman was simply accessible to the Muslim perpetrators. However, it could also be argued that for Muslim perpetrators, a Muslim woman would likely be more accessible than a Hindu woman. The fact that the perpetrators specifically targeted the Hindu woman could suggest religious profiling of the victim. Nevertheless, this remains speculative, as the case details provide no clear indication of religious motivations. Furthermore, the victim has not made any statements suggesting a religious motive behind the crime. For this reason, the case has been added to the 'Undecided' database. If further information emerges that hints towards a religiously motivated crime, then it would be reclassified and included under the Hate Crime database.
Victim Details
Total Victim
1
Deceased
0
Gender
- Male 0
- Female 1
- Third Gender 0
- Unknown 0
Caste
- SC/ST 0
- OBC 0
- General 0
- Unknown 1
Age Group
- Minor 0
- Adult 1
- Senior Citizen 0
- Unknown 0
Case Status
Arrested
Perpetrators Details
Perpetrators
Muslim Extremists
Perpetrators Range
From 2 To 5
Perpetrators Gender
male
Sources 
