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Durgapur gangrape case: All accused arrested amid row over Bengal CM Mamata Banerjee's remark
A medical college student, hailing from Odisha, was allegedly raped by some men outside campus of a private medical college in Durgapur.
The West Bengal Police on Monday said all five accused in the alleged gang rape case of a Durgapur private medical college student are now in custody with the arrest of two more individuals. The development comes amid a huge row over state chief minister Mamata Banerjee's remark that how the survivor was out late in the night.
“Two more arrests have been made. With these, all five accused have been taken into custody based on the complaint filed,” Deputy Commissioner of Police (DCP) of the Asansol-Durgapur Police Commissionerate, Abhishek Gupta was quoted as saying by news agency PTI.
Also Read | Was Durgapur victim out at 12.30 am as Mamata claims? What police report reveals
The Bengal Police arrested three people in connection with the case on Sunday.
A medical college student, hailing from Odisha's Jaleswar, was allegedly raped by some men on Friday night outside the campus of the private medical college in Durgapur, police said on Saturday. The survivor had reportedly went out with one of her friends for dinner, police said.
The second-year Bachelor of Medicine and Bachelor of Surgery (MBBS) student is undergoing treatment at the hospital itself and has given her statement to the police.
Also read: Durgapur rape case: Outrage as Mamata asks how she could leave campus at night
Meanwhile, the case triggered a political slugfest in Bengal after chief minister Mamata Banerjee asked why the student had stepped out of the campus at night. “We take cases like these very seriously in Bengal. Three persons have been arrested and investigation is on. But how could the student leave the campus at night? It is a forest area. The private medical college must take care of its students," she said.
While Mamata later clarified that her statement had been distorted, the Bharatiya Janata Party slammed her for resorting to victim-blaming.
Also read: After 'out at 12:30 am' shocker on rape case, Mamata says 'words distorted'
BJP national spokesperson Gaurav Bhatia called Banerjee a “blot on womanhood”.
He wrote on X, “Shameless @MamataOfficial a blot on womanhood, even more for being a CM…After RG Kar and Sandeshkhali, now this horrific case of rape and instead of justice, she blames the victim.”
Union Minister Sukanta Majumdar slammed the TMC, claiming that the party has repeatedly made such statements and questioned whether the Chief Minister wanted all women to wear burqas and stay at home.
"Earlier, when the RG Kar Medical College incident occurred, a notification was issued that private companies should give fewer night shifts to women. Now the Chief Minister is saying that women should not go out at night. Does she want all women to wear burqas and stay at home?" he said.
Union minister Kiren Rijiju also took a dig at Mamata as he attacked certain sections of media for being silent on her comments that have been deemed as blaming the victim. “Imagine, if this statement was made by a BJP Chief Minister! The whole echo-system and self declared liberal journalists (actually illiberal gang) would have created unbearable situation in the country (sic),” Rijiju wrote on X (formerly Twitter).
