Political Row in Bengal After Rape-Murder Accused Killed in Encounter

‘Crocodile tears’ started flooding select political camps in West Bengal after one of the principal accused in the rape and murder of an 11-year-old girl in Baruipur was killed in a police encounter late Tuesday night.

The accused allegedly attempted to snatch a police officer's service revolver and open fire during a crime scene reconstruction, police said.

What has taken the police as well as ordinary people aback is the extraordinary reaction of the accused's mother, who unequivocally condemned her son's actions and endorsed the police measures to reconstruct the crime scene.

Be that as it may, a section of the opposition in the state, in its eagerness to salvage some ground after the recently held assembly elections, sought to grab media mileage by describing the police action as "jungle raj."

Never mind the ghastly rape and murder of an innocent little girl! The attitude of that section seemed to reek of "What's the big deal? Rapes and murders are happening across the country."

Crime Scene Recreation by Police

Sleuths belonging to the SIT (Special Investigation Team) alleged that Prabhas Mondal, who had been taken to Surajpur (the crime spot), suddenly grabbed a police officer's service revolver and tried to escape after opening fire.

Cops fired back in self-defence; Mondal was rushed to Baruipur Sub-Divisional Hospital, where doctors declared him dead.

Reacting to news of her son's death, the accused's mother burst out: "He deserved this fate for the crime he committed. I will not visit the hospital to see or bring his body home. Let police do whatever is necessary."

"That little girl suffered terribly before she died. My son has met the fate he deserved. I have no sorrow. Had he died a natural death, I might have gone to see him one last time. But now, there is nothing left to see," she added.

Instead of expressing grief, the accused's wife openly condemned him, raising serious charges and claiming that he was always of a filthy nature. "So, I cannot say that he did not commit this crime. I ran the household while enduring his vicious torture. He got shot because he committed a crime."

Representative Picture

Abhaya's Mother Supports Police

The rape and murder of the 11-year-old girl had sparked statewide outrage, leading to the arrest of several accused, with Prabhas Mondal among the principal suspects. While police have maintained that the firing was carried out strictly in self-defence and in accordance with legal procedure, they have also said that the encounter itself will be investigated as per established protocol.

The incident drew support from Ratna Debnath, MLA from Panihati and mother of the doctor who was raped and murdered in the infamous R G Kar Hospital case.

"I believe they (the police) did the right thing. They acted in self-defence. A rapist has met his fate. If such firm action is taken, it may help save many more children in the future," she observed.

Commenting on the accused's mother's response, Debnath said, "I consider her a courageous and principled mother. She is speaking with a heart weighed down by unimaginable pain. No mother finds it easy to say such things about her own child."

Tracking the CCTV footage of the locality, police first identified Mondal and arrested him. Initially, he tried to mislead the police by giving false information, but broke down after intensive grilling. Following his leads, police arrested three more accused — Anando Sardar, Dibakar Sardar and Kabir Molla.

Chief Minister Suvendu Adhikari, who met the governor at Raj Bhavan on Wednesday, briefed him on the details of the investigation and the latest developments.

Crocodile Tears?

The encounter has triggered a political controversy.

Interestingly, Trinamool Congress MP Mahua Moitra, who remained consistently silent during dozens of rapes and murders of girls under the erstwhile TMC regime, suddenly turned vocal today.

Launching an attack on the West Bengal government, she alleged that the state had descended into "jungle raj" by embracing an "encounter culture."

In a post on X, Moitra wrote: "Prabhas Mondal, an accused in the Baruipur rape and murder case, has been killed in an encounter. West Bengal Police, what is happening? Welcome to the new Bengal — Uttar Pradesh 2.0. This is not governance; this is jungle raj."

Ridiculing Moitra for her previous "thundering silence" and present "roar" as nothing short of crocodile tears, BJP legislator Sajal Ghosh said Moitra would do well to first demand a thorough investigation into previous rape-and-murder cases of innocent girls — especially the brutal case of Abhaya at the R G Kar Hospital during the Mamata Banerjee-led TMC regime.