Agartala: Agartala and most of Tripura may be under a cyclonic spell right now, but Kumarghat, a sub-division under the Unakoti district of Tripura, has been home to a political storm over the past couple of days.
Activists from different political parties and civil society members have been on the streets, seeking justice for a 16-year-old rape victim.
According to the police, the minor was abducted, gang raped and later dumped into the streets by a gang of hooligans. Following the girl’s complaints, three persons had already been arrested.
But the incident took a sensational turn when the son of Labour Minister Bhagaban Das, an MLA from the Pabiacherra assembly constituency, was linked to the case. However, the ruling Bharatiya Janata Party leaders dismissed the allegations, calling it a malicious campaign.
The Unakoti district spokesperson said the minister’s son was not even at Kumarghat when the incident took place.
As per the police records, the incident took place late on the night of October 19. The minor girl was kidnapped from the road, from where they took her to a three-storey building close to the Kumarghat hospital.
The victim lodged an FIR with the police station on October 20. “She named two persons in the FIR. We did not waste any time as both persons were arrested within 24 hours of registration of the FIR. The accused persons had been identified as Papia Deb and Rajib Das. They were produced before the Court and subsequently remanded for police interrogation. After the initial interrogation, their accomplice—Tuhin Deb was picked up and forwarded to the Court. The further investigation related to the case is underway,” in-charge Fatikroy police station Biplab Debbarma said.
The police have also sealed the crime scene and seized the vehicle used for abducting the minor victim.
However, opposition parties alleged the police investigation in connection with the case is off track and the real culprits are still beyond the police’s reach.
Tripura Pradesh Congress leader and former BJP MLA Asish Kumar Saha claimed they came to know that the place of occurrence was rented by the minister’s son. Naturally, his name would be reflected in the list of suspects but so far police did not make any efforts to interrogate the minister’s son.
“Such kind of heinous crimes leaves indelible scars on society. And, the way police are acting at the behest of political bosses to give clean chit to the main accused persons, raised serious questions on the impartiality of the police. Since the name of the minister’s son is being linked with the case and civic society groups are demanding the arrest of all the accused persons, we feel the investigation should be handed over to a special investigation team”, said Saha.
The former MLA who deserted the saffron party last year also alleged that people were still in the dark regarding the investigation.
“The statement of the victim has been recorded before the magistrate under Section 164 of CrPC. But to date, police had not divulged anything related to the case. We don’t know how many people are accused in the case and who all are named in the statement recorded in front of the magistrate,” said Saha.
The Congress party also demanded a statement from the Chief Minister who is holding the Home Portfolio. “We haven’t heard anything from the Home Minister so far. His silence is again raising concerns.”
CPIM state Secretary Jitendra Chowdhury, on the other hand, said that this is not the first time that people of Kumarghat are protesting against the Minister’s son.
“During the last Durga Puja, he was responsible for creating a ruckus in the Dashami Mela and publicly beating a police officer. I want to say that if the people of Kumarghat are raising their voices against his son, he should think impartially. After all, he has taken the oath of secrecy and holds a constitutional position. He should have ordered the police administration to investigate the matter impartially,” Chowdhury added.
The CPIM party activists have taken out several rallies in Kumarghat seeking the arrest of all the culprits responsible for the crime.
The All India Trinamool Congress leaders also met in a mass deputation at the Fatikroy police station and laid a siege around the police station on Sunday, seeking justice for the victim.
Trinamool Rajya Sabha MP Susmita Dev said, “Prime Minister Narendra Modi says Beti Bachao, Beti Parao. He advocates zero tolerance against crimes against women. This is the time when he should work on the talk. Either the minister should be dropped from the state cabinet or he should take moral responsibility and resign. Such crimes call for strict punitive measures, and any dereliction in the investigation is uncalled for in a civilized society.”
EastMojo also contacted SP Unakoti district Kanta Jangir who said that no one involved with the crime would be spared. “Medical tests of the minor girl have been conducted already. We are making all efforts to trace the perpetrators as soon as possible,” she said.
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