A tribal woman was found dead in bushes in South Dinajpur district on Thursday night, triggering a political war of words between the ruling Trinamool Congress (TMC) and the BJP over women safety in the state.
While the BJP claimed that the woman was gangraped and murdered, the ruling TMC accused the saffron party of politicising the incident.
The police said conclusions can only be drawn after the receipt of the post-mortem report.
According to the police, the woman was found dead by some locals who informed the police. She had left home on Wednesday telling family members that she was going to the market but did not return by nightfall, the sleuths said, adding that her kin went looking for her. She was eventually found dead on Thursday evening.
The woman’s family has lodged a complaint with the police claiming she was murdered. “She did not return home after leaving for the market on Wednesday. We began a search yesterday. However, she was found dead in the evening. We suspect that she was murdered,” said a family member of the victim.
A case has been filed under sections 302 (murder), 201 (disappearance of evidence) and 34 (common intention). The police have sent the body for post-mortem examination and have detained one person in connection with the incident.
“On getting information, our officers reached the spot and recovered the body. We have sent it for post-mortem. We have started an investigation into the matter. The cause of death will be ascertained only once the post-mortem report is obtained. Let’s not jump to conclusions beforehand,” Rahul De, SP of South Dinajpur district, said.
However, BJP state president Sukanta Majumdar said, “We came to know yesterday that a tribal woman had been gangraped and murdered. The incident took place in my constituency. I have decided to postpone all my organizational meetings for the next few days and visit my district to stand by the bereaved family. This incident once again shows that women are not safe in West Bengal.”
Responding to his claim, TMC’s South Dinajpur district president Ujjal Basak said the BJP should not politicise the
incident. “The BJP should not disrupt peace by making such wild. They are welcome to stand by the people and offer help. But they must not hatch a conspiracy over the incident and reap political dividends,” Basak said.
Meanwhile, the BJP state president on Friday apologised for disclosing the identity of an alleged rape victim on social media,
Majumdar clarified that the team handling his Twitter account made the mistake, and he ensured hat the tweet was deleted as soon as he found out.
In a tweet, the BJP MP, while attacking the state government, attached a picture of the body and disclosed her identity, stating that she was raped and murdered.
“Those who handle my Twitter account made the mistake. The identity (of rape victim) cannot be disclosed. When I came to know about it, I immediately removed the name. We have rectified the mistake, and we apologize for it,” Majumdar told mediapersons in Birbhum district.
— With PTI inputs
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