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Investigators suspect that a video clip of the June 25 gangrape may have been shared by the accused.
The three accused were produced in court on Monday. (PTI)
The gangrape of a female student at South Calcutta Law College was pre-planned, and the victim had been targeted from the very first day of her admission, a senior Kolkata Police officer said on Monday, citing findings from the Special Investigation Team (SIT) probing the case.
According to the officer, three out of the four arrested, Monojit Mishra, Pratim Mukherjee, and Zaid Ahmed, had plotted the assault days in advance. The SIT has also uncovered that the trio had a history of sexually harassing female students of the college. The fourth accused is the college’s security guard.
The investigation further revealed that the accused would allegedly record their acts on mobile phones and later use the footage to blackmail victims. “The entire matter was premeditated. The trio had been plotting for several days to carry out this torture on the victim. We have found that the victim was targeted by the prime accused from the very first day she got admission to the college,” the officer told PTI.
Also Read: Kolkata Gang-Rape Probe: Security Guard’s ‘Another Woman’ Claim, A Red Kurta Under Lens
The officer also confirmed that Kolkata Police has launched a search for mobile videos allegedly filmed by the accused. “Searches were conducted at the residences of accused Mukherjee and Ahmed on Sunday. We are looking for footage related to this and possibly other incidents,” the officer said, reported PTI.
Investigators suspect that a video clip of the June 25 gangrape may have been shared by the accused. “We are trying to find out whether those clips were forwarded or shared with some other groups. In that case, we have to get in touch with those who have received that,” the officer added.
Also Read: Kolkata Gang-Rape Case: CCTV Footage, Data Records Back Victim, Police To Recreate Crime Scene
The SIT has also prepared a list of over 25 individuals, mostly students of South Calcutta Law College, who were present on the college premises on the evening of June 25. “All these people will be questioned in connection with the investigation. We have to find out what they witnessed that evening,” the officer said.
BJP Fact-Finding Team Arrives And BJP Vs CPI(M) Cadre Scuffle
The four-member BJP fact-finding team arrived in Kolkata earlier today. The leaders attempted to visit the law college, where the crime took place; however, they were denied entry by the police. The supporters of the BJP and CPI(M) scuffled among themselves.
BJP MP Manan Kumar Mishra, member of the BJP fact-finding team, called upon the people of West Bengal to vote out TMC in the Assembly elections for a “better future”.
“People of West Bengal are unfortunate. We don’t know why the state is not awakening. This incident in a law college is disturbing. Students are not safe in their own college campuses. We saw the RG Kar case earlier and now this… If the people want a better future for their generations, they should vote out TMC in the upcoming elections,” he told news agency ANI.
BJP MP Biplab Kumar Deb, also a member of the team, slammed Chief Minister Mamata Banerjee over the crimes against women in her state and said that she should “feel ashamed as a woman”.
“Mamata Banerjee should feel ashamed as a woman and as a CM that another party’s delegation had come to look into the case. She could have done it herself, but she didn’t… Can she face the fact that she is not being able to give protection to women? A criminal was appointed to a law college. Before appointing anyone for a job, a criminal verification is carried out. Why was he given this job despite his background?” he asked.
Former union minister Meenakashi Lekhi alleged that criminals were being appointed to the colleges under political protection.
“As a woman and an Indian citizen, I stand with all women who have been victims of such crimes. Politics has been criminalised and criminals are given protection by the ruling party. Now, with political protection, criminals are being appointed to colleges. Making use of that access and privilege, they indulge in such activities and our daughters are being misbehaved with. The whole political system has broken down, and the civilians are paying the price for it,” Lekhi said.
Covering day-to-day national and international news for the last nine years across print and digital. Associated with News18.com as Chief Sub-Editor since 2022, covering innumerable big and small events, includ…Read More
Covering day-to-day national and international news for the last nine years across print and digital. Associated with News18.com as Chief Sub-Editor since 2022, covering innumerable big and small events, includ… Read More
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