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How much is a life worth?

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Malini Banerjee
Malini BanerjeeFeb 05, 2015 | 23:37

How much is a life worth?

As a child I remember I used to confuse two Bengali words amulya (invaluable or priceless) and mulyaheen (without value). Jokes about my atrocious Bengali aside, it wouldn't be too wrong to state that many in Kolkata must suffer from the same confusion.

 Out of all things considered invaluable, a human life, should be one of them, one should think. But increasingly it looks like it has no value. And those invested in protecting it, and upholding the laws that do so, no longer seem to be doing their job unless pressured. Arup Bhandari, a 24-year-old, was beaten up with wooden planks and an iron chair for protesting against "eve teasing" during a Saraswati Puja immersion procession on January 28. His parents allege that the police refused to lodge an FIR against the assailants until the next afternoon when locals blocked a road in the area in protest.

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He finally succumbed to his injuries and died three days ago. Chief minister Mamata Banerjee visited the family yesterday with a job offer for Bhandari's brother. A government job in return for a life. Fair trade, isn't it? 

Speaking of bullies and rowdies ganging up against the defenceless, a chargesheet has been prepared against 11 people (nine of them students) from NRS Medical College for murdering Kurban Shah, a mentally unstable man. On the night of November 16, last year, he was accused of trespassing into the college campus and stealing a mobile and was lynched to death. It took the police 80 days to figure out the identity of the assailants who were responsible for chaining the 28-year-old father of four, to a pillar and beating him to death. 88 students were interrogated but only a few admitted to knowing the people involved in the assault. Even though the police have physical evidence that at least 35 were in the building the incident took place in, not many came out with useful information. There were hardly any protest rallies for Shah. Many did not have the courage to speak up about him.

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How do people gearing themselves up to take the famous Hippocratic Oath wilfully take a life instead of saving it?  

What is the going rate for a life these days? Is it a job? A phone? Or is totally without value?

Last updated: February 05, 2015 | 23:37
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