The Trinamool Congress, under fire over the gang-rape of a law student on her college campus, allegedly by a student wing former leader of the party, on Monday doubled down on its offensive on women’s security in the BJP-ruled states.
The Trinamool’s deputy leader in the Rajya Sabha Sagarika Ghose cited the example of Madhya Pradesh.
“7,294 cases of rape in Madhya Pradesh in 2024. A rise of 19 per cent. 20 rapes every day in Madhya Pradesh. Madhya Pradesh Police will say, police alone can’t stop rapes. Will National Commission for Women or BJP “fact finding team” go to MP? Or are “fact finding” teams only meant for opposition ruled states,” asked Ghose on her X handle.
After last year’s rape and murder of a post-graduate trainee doctor at the state-run RG Kar Medical College and Hospital, the gang-rape of the 24-year old law student in the Kasba campus of the South Calcutta Law college last week has handed another stick to the Opposition to beat the ruling Trinamool with.
“Despite BJP propaganda the truth is crimes against women are among lowest in Bengal as per National Crime Records Bureau data. This campaign to tarnish and demean Bengal will not help,” said Ghose.
The Trinamool’s counter to the BJP came hours after a four-member fact finding team of the BJP landed in Kolkata. The team wants to meet the chief secretary, the Kolkata Police chief and also the survivor.
At the time of writing this report, however, the fact-finding team had not been able to meet anyone of consequence.
The Kolkata Police, who have formed a special investigation team, have made four arrests in the case.
The apparent close ties the main accused shared with several Trinamool leaders has put the party in a spot, which it has been trying hard to distance itself from.
State minister and party spokesperson Shashi Panja referred to the track records of the four members of the fact finding team, former Tripura CM and MP Biplab Deb, Satyapal Singh, Meenakshi Lekhi and Manan Mishra.
“Biplab Deb is the same person under whose watch in Tripura freedom of speech was murdered in broad daylight. Attacks on journalists and Opposition was rampant. Our general secretary Abhishek Banerjee’s convoy, our MP Sushmita Dev were attacked in Tripura. Many brutal rape cases took place in Tripura when he was CM,” Panja said.
Panja alleged during the Hathras rape case, Singh, a former Mumbai police commissioner, had claimed that “police and government can’t stop rapes.”
Panja said: “Instead of photo optics, BJP should focus on the states where they are in power and stop defending rapists.”
