The alleged rape and murder of an 11-year-old girl in Baruipur, in West Bengal's South 24 Parganas district, which came to light on Sunday morning, has sparked a political storm in the state.
The girl's body was found stuffed inside a sack in the Surjyapur Haat area, triggering protests by local residents on Sunday. Demonstrators blocked the Baruipur–Jaynagar Road, burnt tyres and vandalised several police vehicles while demanding the immediate arrest of those responsible.
A 26-year-old suspect was allegedly lynched by an enraged mob demanding justice for the victim's family.
Meanwhile, authorities imposed prohibitory orders under Section 163 of the Bharatiya Nagarik Suraksha Sanhita (BNSS) in the Baruipur, Narendrapur and Sonarpur areas of South 24 Parganas to maintain law and order.
Baruipur remained tense on Monday, a day after locals held a protest demanding the arrest of the accused.
Arrest of key accused
Police said the prime accused in the case, Ananda Sardar, was arrested on Monday following an overnight search operation. Earlier, two suspects had been arrested and three others detained for questioning.
According to police, the names of the key accused emerged during the interrogation of the two suspects arrested on Sunday.
Chief minister Suvendu Adhikari spoke to the girl’s father and assured him of strict action. The CM would reportedly meet him on July 7.
According to reports, CCTV footage showing a man wearing a blue cap accompanying the missing girl helped residents identify a suspect, whose alleged disclosure led to the recovery of the victim's body.
The state government has constituted a six-member Special Investigation Team (SIT), headed by Additional Superintendent of Police Pinaki Dutta, to investigate the case.
TMC leaders meet girl's family
On Monday, a team of Trinamool Congress (TMC) leaders reached Baruipur despite prohibitory orders and met the family of the 11-year-old girl.
The leaders held a meeting at former chief minister Mamata Banerjee's residence in south Kolkata before leaving for Baruipur.
The opposition TMC alleged on Sunday night that barricades had been placed and heavy police deployment made outside Banerjee's residence to prevent her from visiting the victim's family.
The BJP dismissed the allegation, describing it as an attempt by the TMC to "manufacture a controversy" over a routine security arrangement.
The team included former assembly speaker and local MLA Biman Banerjee, Rajya Sabha MP Dola Sen and Joynagar MP Pratima Mondal, among others.
TMC's Baruipur Dakshin MLA Biman Banerjee said, "Police should have been proactive in tracing the criminals. The locals had no choice but to resort to protests and it was spontaneous."
"It was unfortunate that Mamata Banerjee was stopped from visiting the victim's family," he said and termed it an attempt to throttle people's voice.
'Govt will ensure girl's family gets justice'
Chief Minister Suvendu Adhikari said in Kolkata that his government will ensure the girl's family gets justice and the perpetrators of the brutal crime are hanged.
"It's a crime of unspeakable horror. I have spoken to the parents of the victim, and the government is doing everything the family has asked for. They will get justice, and the criminals should receive capital punishment. I am happy that the family has reposed its trust in the government," he said.
Adhikari added that besides the main crime, three cases have also been lodged in connection with the violence that followed.
"There was an incident of mob lynching with a communal angle to it. Railway tracks were damaged, bringing back memories of the 2019 anti-CAA protests and the more recent anti-Waqf Act protest. These apart, two CRPF jawans were assaulted, and a police vehicle was torched," the CM said.
"We will surely provide justice to the family. But we will also make those frustrated souls, who locked themselves up in their rooms after getting defeated in the elections and who orchestrated the violence, suffer beyond their imagination," he warned, obliquely referring to local TMC leaders suspected of taking part in Sunday's unrest.
(With inputs from TNIE Online Desk, PTI)
