Kolkata: A four-year-old girl from the Banjara community remains in critical condition after being allegedly abducted from a railway shed in Tarakeswar, Hooghly district near Kolkata, where she was sexually assaulted and abandoned in a pool of blood beside a drain.
Details of the Incident
The child was sleeping on a cot under a mosquito net next to her grandmother on the night of November 7 when the attacker reportedly cut through the net and took her.
The grandmother noticed her absence around 4:00 am but did not realise when the abduction occurred. "She was sleeping with me. Around 4 am, someone took her away. I didn’t even realise when she was taken. I don’t know who the people were who took her away. They cut the mosquito net and took her away," the grandmother told NDTV.
The girl was discovered naked and bleeding near the Tarakeswar railway high drain the following afternoon on November 8 and was immediately taken to a local hospital for treatment. The family highlighted their precarious living conditions, with the grandmother stating, "We live on the streets because they have demolished our houses. Where do we go? We don’t have any homes," as quoted by NDTV.
Police Response and Political Allegations
Authorities registered a case under the Protection of Children from Sexual Offences (POCSO) Act. However, the opposition Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) criticised the ruling Trinamool Congress, claiming police initially hesitated to file a First Information Report (FIR).
West Bengal's Leader of the Opposition, Suvendu Adhikari, accused the police of attempting to suppress details. In a post on X, he wrote, "A 4-year old girl child has been Raped in Tarkeshwar. Family rushes to Police Station, but FIR not registered! Taken to the Hospital – referred to Chandannagar. Tarkeshwar Police busy burying the Crime. This is the True Face of Mamata Banerjee’s free-for-all regime. A child’s life is shattered, yet the Police are shielding the State’s Fake Law & Order Image, by suppressing the truth. Are they Police Officers or Mamata Banerjee’s sycophants? Seems like Tarkeshwar Police have forgotten their Oath to uphold the Law. Mamata Banerjee, you are a Failed Chief Minister. Under your rule, West Bengal’s law & order has hit ROCK BOTTOM. Same script every time: Rape → No/delayed FIR → Hospital referral → Media blackout → TMC leaders cover-up! Mamata Banerjee, how many more lives of innocent daughters must be sacrificed/destroyed for your political survival?"
