Two people were arrested and three detained for questioning in connection with the alleged rape and murder of a 12-year-old girl in West Bengal’s Baruipur, even as prohibitory orders preventing large gatherings were imposed in parts of the Kolkata suburb. A man was allegedly lynched on Sunday on suspicion of being involved in the incident that sparked outrage.
“We have arrested two people. Three more were being questioned. We are waiting for the autopsy report. A six-member Special Investigation Team (SIT) has been set up. Four FIRs [first information reports] have been registered, including one related to the alleged rape and murder of the girl and the lynching of a man,” said a police officer. Police said raids were continuing to apprehend the other suspects.
Prohibitory orders under Bharatiya Nagarik Suraksha Sanhita ’s Section 163 were imposed in parts of Baruipur and adjoining areas, and additional police force was deployed amid tensions in the area.
The 12-year-old’s body was recovered from a pond a day after she went missing on Saturday. Her family alleged that she was raped and murdered. On Sunday, residents blocked roads and railway tracks, demanding justice.
Chief minister Suvendu Adhikari called the girl’s father and assured him that the culprits would be arrested and punished. The father said he demanded that they be hanged. “He [Adhikari] asked me to go to Bhabani Bhawan [the state Criminal Investigation Department headquarters] on Tuesday. I am satisfied with the administration.”
The Trinamool Congress (TMC) linked heavy police deployment and barricading outside former chief minister Mamata Banerjee to an attempt to prevent her from visiting the girl’s family. In a post on X, it said heavy police deployment and route marches were suspiciously being conducted outside Banerjee and TMC national general secretary Abhishek Banerjee’s residences.
TMC leader Derek O’Brien posted “alarming visuals” from the lane outside the homes of Mamata Banerjee and Abhishek Banerjee, and questioned why central forces were being deployed to restrict freedom of movement and confine them to their homes. “Route march happening now. Confinement using force!” he wrote on X.
