KOLKATA: A person was lynched as violent protests rocked the Baruipur area of West Bengal's South 24 Parganas district on Sunday after the body of a 12-year-old girl, who was allegedly raped and murdered, was recovered from the Surjyapur Haat.
The body was found stuffed in a sack in the Surjyapur Haat of the Baruipur area on Sunday morning.
According to police, the girl went missing on Saturday afternoon after she left home to buy a gift for her friend's birthday. Family members of the girl alleged that four persons had forcibly taken her away.
Meanwhile, one person, who was allegedly seen with the suspects in the case, was lynched by the angry mob.
They also blocked the railway tracks, disrupting train services in the Sealdah-Namkhana line for more than an hour. The protesters also blocked the Baruipur-Joynagar road for five hours, prompting the intervention of Chief Minister Suvendhu Adhikari.
The protesters hurled stones at the police team that arrived at the site. Police resorted to lathi charge to bring the situation under control.
The protestors have alleged that the culprits were associated with the local BJP leadership, which is why no arrests have been made in the case yet.
As violence intensified, CM Suvendhu Adhikari spoke to the bereaved father of the girl over phone and assured a proper investigation into the alleged rape and murder. The CM also asked the father to come to the Bhabani Bhaban, West Bengal Police (WBP) headquarters in the city, on Tuesday.
"I have spoken to the Chief Minister and demanded him for strong punishment to the accused. He has assured us of all support," the victim’s father said.
After the CM's call and intervention of senior police officials, including IGP Kankarprasad Barui, the protesters agreed to lift the road blockade and agreed to hand over the body of the girl for postmortem examination.
The police has detained one person for questioning while no arrests have been made so far.
The district CPIM leadership visited the spot and demanded a proper investigation in the case.
