Kolkata: Three men who allegedly raped a 24-year-old law student in a guard room on the law college campus in south Kolkata on June 25 have been arrested, police said on Friday.
Police identified the three suspects as Monojit Mishra, 31, a college staffer, and two students, Zaib Ahmed, 19, and Pramit Mukherjee, 20.
“The three persons have been arrested based on a written complaint lodged by the victim on June 26,” a senior Kolkata police officer said.
Police said the woman had gone to the law college for some work at about 4 pm on Wednesday, and was asked to stay back by Mishra.
The circumstances around the case are still unclear. Police said the three accused forced her into the guard room on the ground floor of the building, where the sexual assault took place between 7:30 pm and 10:50 pm
The woman informed her parents, who reached out to the police.
A written complaint was submitted to the Kasba police station on Thursday. Later in the evening, police arrested Mishra and Ahmed near a park at Talbagan. Mukherjee, the third accused, was arrested from his residence around midnight.
{{/usCountry}}A written complaint was submitted to the Kasba police station on Thursday. Later in the evening, police arrested Mishra and Ahmed near a park at Talbagan. Mukherjee, the third accused, was arrested from his residence around midnight.
{{/usCountry}}The three were produced before the additional chief judicial magistrate’s court in Alipore, which remanded them in police custody for four days till July 1.
Mishra’s lawyer, Azam Khan, said he was innocent. “These are baseless allegations against my client. He is being framed because of a political tussle,” Khan said.
The crime was flagged as a reflection of the law and order situation by the opposition Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP), pointing out that Mishra’s social media account indicated close ties to the state’s ruling Trinamool Congress.
Mishra’s social media account said he was a former president of TMC’s youth wing in the same college.
The Trinamool Congress distanced itself from Mishra and demanded strict action against him.
"Firstly, I would demand the strictest punishment for those found guilty. The accused may have been associated with the TMC's student wing in the past, but he never held any important position," Trinankur Bhattacharjee, state president of Trinamool Chhatra Parishad (TMCP) told reporters.
The BJP was unsparing in its attacks on the TMC. “Anything can happen in this state. Last year a junior doctor was raped and murdered in RG Kar Medical College and Hospital. There is no safety for women in the state.
The chief minister would now say it is a small incident and offer money to the victim. She must resign,” BJP’s Suvendu Adhikari, leader of the Opposition in the state assembly, told reporters.
In its statement, the ruling TMC condemned the rape and noted the three arrests, adding that the full weight of the law will be brought to bear, ensuring the most severe measures are imposed on those found guilty”.
“The guilty should get the strictest punishment. Police are investigating. But, unfortunately, the leader of the opposition is launching an attack over a social menace. We should all fight this social menace together,” Jay Prakash Majumdar, TMC spokesperson, told the media.
Meanwhile, the National Commission for Women has also taken note of the offence and sought a report from Kolkata police commissioner Manoj Verma to seek a detailed report into the case within three days.