A gram panchayat member of the Trinamool Congress and his associate were arrested on charges of molesting a minor girl in public near Bhangar in South 24-Parganas district on Thursday night.

The girl, a Madhyamik examinee, said Bamanghata gram panchayat member Chiranjit Mondal and his associates would frequently gather in front of her house and make inappropriate advances toward her.

On Thursday night, the girl, accompanied by her family, went to a religious soiree at Bamanghata where a “tug of war” was organised for women.

Sources said Mondal and one of his close aides had arrived at the venue and attempted to drag the girl away. “When she resisted, Mondal touched her inappropriately. When the girl struggled to free herself, her clothes were torn, leaving her humiliated and forcing her to rush home in distress,” said a source.

The Class X student’s relatives soon went to Mondal’s residence and confronted him. “The girl’s family members were assaulted and police had to intervene to restore order. Anticipating trouble, Mondal and his associates fled the scene,” said the source.

Based on a complaint lodged by the girl’s family, the Leather Complex police arrested Mondal and one of his aides.

Local Trinamool leader Animesh Mondal condemned the incident.

“Even though the accused is an elected member of the local gram panchayat, his behaviour is unacceptable and shocking. We never encourage such things and have requested the administration to take legal steps against him,” said Animesh.

The victim’s family alleged that Mondal and his associates had been harassing her for several days, often teasing her on the way to school.

“She always protested and raised her voice against them. Even on the day of her Madhyamik examination, he made indecent proposals and tried to drag her away. When she resisted, he became furious and sought revenge by molesting her at the religious event in front of all,” said a relative.

“We had informed the local Trinamool leadership about his misconduct, but no action was taken,” the relative added.

BJP state president Sukanta Majumdar slammed Trinamool and chief minister Mamata Banerjee for the incident.

In a post on his official X handle, Majumdar wrote: “@MamataOfficial, is this yet another trivial incident?.... There were attempts to beat up her by the goons of Trinamool. What kind of lawlessness is this, Honorable Chief Minister?.... Does one have to be a notorious criminal to get a ticket to become a representative of your party?”