The Kolkata Police in the small hours of Friday arrested Manojit Mishra a Trinamool Congress Chhatra Parishad leader and a newly graduated lawyer on charges of raping one of his juniors inside the guard room of the South Calcutta Law College, barely 500 metres from the Kasba Police Station. Mishra is a student leader, allegedly serving as a link between the college and the TMC leadership.
Apart from Manojit police arrested two of his associates Pratim Mukherjee and Jahid Ahmed, both third year students, who stood guard at, when Mishra committed the dastardly act.
They were on Friday produced before the Alipore Police Court where they were remanded to four days’ police custody.
The incident took place late on Wednesday evening, sources said. “She was called by her seniors in the college at about 12 in the noon - all in the name of helping him in out on some issues,” sources in the police quoting the victim said.
“Inside the Union Room she was first proposed marriage by the accused. When she spurned the offer saying she already had a boyfriend, she was further made to sit till 8 in the evening. She was first molested by Monojit near the washroom. When she resisted he beat him up. She went into a panic attack and had to be stabilised with an inhaler,” sources quoting her complaint said adding, “After her condition improved she was raped by the accused while the two other students stood guard outside. She was also asked not to reveal the matter outside failing, which her parents would be framed in false cases and her boyfriend would be murdered.”
Photographs appearing in the social media suggested that Manojit has been very close to some of top TMC leaders including party general secretary and MP Abhishek Banerjee, minister Chandrima Bhattacharya and College Governing Body president and senior TMC MLA Ashok Deb.
Such has been his clout with the higher-ups according to Nayana Chattopadhyay the Vice Principal of the College that Manojit had recently been appointed by the Governing Body as a temporary staffer whose main job was to serve as a link between the affairs of the college and the leadership, sources said adding he has been one of the contenders for a nomination in the next year’s Assembly elections.
TMC leadership on Friday admitted that Manojit had links with the party and was one of the general secretaries of the party’s students’ wing in South Kolkata district.
Even as the National Commission for Women took a suo motu cognizance of the matter and demanded a report from the Kolkata Police Commissioner within 72 hours Bengal Opposition Leader Suvendu Adhikari asked for Chief Minister Mamata Banerjee’s resignation owning moral responsibility.
“The Chief Minister who is also the Police Minister is celebrating Rathyatra at Digha whereas such ghastly crimes are being perpetrated by her party men in Kolkata … that too within 10 months of the rape and murder at RG Kar Medical College and Hospital … this party has no shame … the audacity of committing rape or even murder comes from the leadership because the lesser leaders know that till Mamata Banerjee is the Chief Minister all criminals in Bengal are safe … the only requirement is to commit crime and share the booty with the leadership,” he said.
Calling it “outrageous” BJP leader Amit Malvya said “Manojit Mishra, one of the prime accused in the brutal gang-rape of a college student in Kasba has direct links with the most powerful in the TMC: Abhishek Banerjee, Councilor Kajari Banerjee (Mamata Banerjee’s sister-in-law) State Minister Chandrima Bhattacharya… Shocking reports suggest that college authorities were instructed to lock the gates while the crime was taking place! Who gave Manojit this impunity? Who shielded him.”
Senior Congress leader Adhir Chowdhury too lashed out at the TMC leadership and the State Government saying, Bengal under TMC had become a dangerous place to live in.
“This is the same State where a doctor is raped and murdered inside her own hospital … a law student is raped by her seniors inside her own college and a 10-year-old school student is bombed to death by the TMC supporters celebrating victory … the incident is a proof of the fact that the females are not safe in Bengal … it is for the general people to decide why should they allow this party to continue in power,” he said.
Meanwhile, the police resorted to a mild lathi-charge and arrested about a dozen people after the members of Left students’ Unions including Students’ Federation of India gheraoed the local police station complaining police inaction.