A woman has alleged an attempt at moral policing and harassment on a Sealdah-bound local train on Sunday night.

A male friend she was travelling with was thrashed by the accused at Sealdah station after the woman slapped one of them, according to her police complaint.

Three of the accused have been arrested, said an officer of the Government Railway Police in Sealdah.

The three — Shibnath Pule, Somen Mistry and Sumit Hazra, all from Joynagar in South 24-Parganas — were on Monday produced in a Sealdah court, which sent them to judicial custody.

The woman has alleged that the incident took place between 9pm and 10pm on Sunday.

“We boarded the Sealdah-bound train in Dhakuria. A woman travelling in the same compartment started commenting on my clothes. I was resting my head on my friend’s shoulder. The co-passenger objected to that as well. I protested and an argument ensued,” the 26-year-old complainant told Metro.

“Three youths boarded the train in Park Circus and sided with the co-passenger. They kept passing lewd comments at me and said they would take my pictures and circulate them on social media. They kept harassing me. As the train entered Sealdah station, I slapped one of the men. Then, the three of them pounced on my friend and thrashed him,” the complainant said.

A team from the GRP reached the spot soon after. The woman, her friend and the three youths were taken to the GRP station in Sealdah. Based on the woman’s complaint, the three men were arrested.

“They have been charged under Sections 74 (assault or criminal force on a woman with the intent to outrage her modesty), 78 (stalking) and 115 (voluntarily causing hurt) of the Bharatiya Nyaya Sanhita (BNS),” a GRP officer said.

He said the ruckus started after a co-passenger objected to a “public display of affection” by the complainant and her friend.

“The three men sided with the co-passenger. Soon, the argument turned into a fight,” the officer said.

“The feud continued even after the train entered Sealdah station. The woman slapped one of the men, following which they pinned her friend to the ground and assaulted him,” he said.

The complainant alleged “non-cooperation” by one GRP officer in Sealdah. “The three men threatened us with dire consequences in front of the men in uniform. When we protested, the officer asked us to lower our voice and threatened to put us behind bars,” she said.

A senior GRP officer denied the allegation. “The woman’s father tried to attack one of the suspects at the station. An officer merely objected to the aggression,” he said.