Delay in forensic report stalls Ranaghat rape probe

Five months after the Ranaghat rape and loot case and about three months after the submission of the charge sheet, the Criminal Investigation Department (CID) investigators have hit a roadblock as forensic reports that will confirm the identity of the rapist are yet to arrive.

Five months after the Ranaghat rape and loot case and about three months after the submission of the charge sheet, the Criminal Investigation Department (CID) investigators have hit a roadblock as forensic reports that will confirm the identity of the rapist are yet to arrive.

“The case is sensitive as the victim was an elderly missionary. To nail the rape suspect conclusively, we need the scientific confirmation that we are yet to receive,” said an officer.

Arun Sharma, a retired IPS officer who is now the administrator of the State Forensic Science Laboratory (FSL), is currently in the US and could not be contacted.

In the early hours of March 14, eight people entered a convent in Nadia district, raped a 71-year-old missionary, looted Rs 12 lakh and then fled to Bangladesh.

The incident sent shockwaves across the nation and under pressure from the chief minister, the CID sleuths arrested seven people named in the FIR.

However, the FSL is yet to provide the serological report to the CID. The agency also did not receive the DNA report from the Central Forensic Science Laboratory (CFSL). Both reports will help ensure the trial begins soon.