The All India Democratic Women's Association (AIDWA) denounces the brutal murder on 19 February of the left student activist, Anis Khan in West Bengal. He was killed when the police accompanied by civic volunteers entered his village home in Howrah District at night and threw him down from the roof. This inhuman act was carried out in front of his father.
Anis Khan had played a leading role in the movement going on in Alia University against selling off land belonging to the university to promoters. The heinous attempt to cover up the murder by those in the highest ranks of the administration is being opposed and resisted everywhere in the state by students and the youth.
To intimidate them and to divert the attention from Anis Khan's murder the government in West Bengal is openly and brutally using terror tactics. Students and youth sitting in front of the Panchla Police Station are refusing to withdraw until the real culprits were identified and proceedings started against them. They were beaten up mercilessly on 26th February. Several of them including Minakshi Mukherji, DYFI West Bengal state secretary were taken into police custody. Many of them were tortured inside the lockup. Minakshi was harassed and abused. Subsequently in spite of obvious marks of torture on the bodies of some of the arrested, 16 of them including Minaskshi have been sent to jail custody till 4th March.
The demand for justice for Anis Khan is still going on. AIDWA, West Bengal is demonstrating in solidarity with the students and youth.
AIDWA expresses solidarity with the resistance to terror and demandd that the government withdraw the vindictive measures being taken against students and youth fighting for a just cause. We also resolve that such fascistic tactics of the administration in TMC-ruled West Bengal shall be resisted by us until those responsible for the murder of Anis Khan are brought to book.
