Mahua Moitra criticises lack of action in Badlapur case, highlights RG Kar case response
PTC News Desk: Trinamool Congress MP Mahua Moitra has criticised the Maharashtra government for its delay in filing a First Information Report (FIR) in the case involving the sexual assault of two kindergarten girls in Badlapur. Moitra took to X to highlight the stark contrast between the Maharashtra Police’s handling of the Badlapur case and the Kolkata Police’s swift action in the rape-murder of a trainee doctor at RG Kar Medical College and Hospital.
Moitra emphasised that while the Kolkata Police acted promptly by arresting the accused within hours of the gruesome incident, the Maharashtra Police were slow to respond. She tweeted, “RG Kar case had a videographed autopsy and Kolkata Police arrested the accused within hours. In Maharashtra, police refused to file an FIR for days. This is the real non-democratic alliance.”
RG Kar case had videographed autopsy and @KolkataPolice
arrested accused within hours. In Maharashtra police refused to file FIR for days. This is the real Non Democratic Alliance.— Mahua Moitra (@MahuaMoitra) August 20, 2024
The incident in Badlapur, where two young girls, aged three and four, were sexually assaulted by a school cleaning staffer, has ignited widespread protests in the region. The protests saw angry locals vandalising the school and disrupting train services, with police eventually resorting to lathicharge to disperse the crowd. Internet services in Badlapur, initially suspended due to the unrest, have since been restored. The National Commission for Protection of Child Rights (NCPCR) has announced plans to send a team to Badlapur for an inquiry.
According to reports, the assault occurred on August 13 but was only reported on August 16 when one of the girls confided in her parents. The accused was arrested on August 17. The victims’ families claimed that an FIR was registered only 12 hours after their complaint was made.
In contrast, the response to the rape-murder case at Kolkata’s RG Kar Medical College, where a postgraduate trainee doctor was found dead on August 9, was notably faster. The accused, Sanjoy Roy, a civic volunteer with the Kolkata Police, was apprehended the following day.
However, the Kolkata police and the Bengal government, led by Chief Minister Mamata Banerjee, have faced significant criticism for their handling of the case. Specific criticisms include the delayed registration of the FIR at 11:45 pm despite the body being discovered earlier that day, and the hospital’s initial attempt to classify the murder as a suicide.
The Supreme Court has recently reprimanded the Bengal government for its handling of the RG Kar case and for failing to manage the vandalism at the hospital effectively.