IN THE THANA

Rupam and Sanghamitra Mazumdar outside Bhabani Bhavan on Wednesday. Picture by Amit Datta

Three days after the alleged vandalism by army officers rocked Park Street police station, a key witness who was sharing the bench with Major Chandra Pratap Singh on the night of December 31 told Metro her side of the story.

Speaking over the phone from an undisclosed destination, the woman — whose identity is being withheld — clarified that the army officer had behaved badly and violently in the police station but had not physically harassed her.

This is what she recounted about her brush with angry Major Singh at Park Street police station...

“On New Year’s Eve, I had gone to Park Street with three-four friends. There were policemen everywhere.

Around 11.30 pm, my friends got into an an altercation with some cops. They were taken to the Park Street police station. I waited for some time, but when they didn’t step out of the thana, I decided to go inside.

I went to the room of the duty officer and was made to sit on a bench, even as the officers got busy with the paperwork to release my friends.

There was a man, sitting on the bench, who seemed very agitated. He just refused to sit. He kept threatening the policemen with dire consequences unless he was allowed to leave immediately. He even said he would smash the table in front of the officer.

He was furious... He started screaming and thumping the table... He even tried to smash the telephone.

I was shocked. I protested and asked him why he was behaving in such a manner. The man shouted at me and we had a heated exchange of words, following which he even threatened to hit me. But let me clarify that he didn’t abuse me physically. I then lodged a complaint with the police station against him.

I am a simple woman and don’t want to get into a mess. Till date, police have not sought any form of help from me but let me tell you that if they seek it, I am ready to cooperate with them.”