A minor girl at Maynaguri in north Bengal’s Jalpaiguri district set herself on fire on Thursday following threats from a man who allegedly tried to rape her on February 28, police said.
The accused, Ajay Roy, and his brother Bijay, who is a Trinamool Congress (TMC) worker, were arrested by the local police on Friday and produced before a local court.
The girl, a Class 8 student, is undergoing treatment at a state-run hospital in Siliguri town. Her mother has been allowed to stay with her.
“Doctors said the burn injuries are critical in nature,” the minor’s father told the local media. He alleged that Ajay Roy tried to rape the minor on February 28.
“We faced threats after we lodged a police complaint. The accused went into hiding and got anticipatory bail from court. On Wednesday, when my daughter was alone at home, two youths came to our house and threatened to kill her and the entire family if she does not withdraw the complaint against Ajay,” said the victim’s father.
“My daughter was so scared that she tried to kill herself on Thursday. Her condition is critical,” he said.
{{/usCountry}}“My daughter was so scared that she tried to kill herself on Thursday. Her condition is critical,” he said.
{{/usCountry}}Bapi Goswami, the Jalpaiguri district unit president of the Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) alleged that the TMC was shielding the accused for one-and-a-half months.
“Why weren’t they arrested earlier? The TMC is protecting criminals everywhere,” Goswami said.
Shibshankar Dutta, the TMC’s Maynaguri 2 community block unit president, said his party has nothing to do with the crime and it will take action against those who are found to be involved.
“We are extremely sad to hear about the girl. We wish her a speedy recovery. We will ask the police to take strong action,” he said.
Jalpaiguri superintendent of police Debarshi Dutta said: “The police registered a case in February and also took action on Thursday. It is being probed why the minor tried to commit suicide.”