Security guard of Kolkata law college where student was raped held, fourth arrest in case
The security guard of the Kolkata law college where a 24-year-old student was allegedly raped was arrested by Kolkata Police Friday in connection with the case. This is the fourth arrest in the case as the police have already taken three men — a contractual staffer, who was a TMC students' wing functionary, and two students — into custody.
'We have arrested security guard of the college in connection with the case,' Rupesh Kumar, the Joint Commissioner of Kolkata Police (Crime), said.
In the complaint, a copy of which is with The Indian Express, the woman had alleged that she was raped inside the security guard's room after he was instructed to leave.
According to the complaint, the student was raped on the evening of June 25 for hours. The three accused who have been arrested have been identified as Monojit Mishra (31), Zaib Ahmed (19) and Pramit Mukherjee (20). Mishra, the prime accused, was a former student of the law college and is currently employed in the institution as a contractual staffer. While he was a Trinamool Chhatra Parishad leader during his time as a student, the TMC claimed he is no longer associated with the party. The two other accused are currently studying in the law college.
According to the complaint by the victim, while Mishra allegedly sexually assaulted the woman, the other two locked the door from the outside.
Another senior officer associated with the case, informed: 'We have arrested one of the security guards of the college. We found discrepancies in his statement and the victim has also made a direct complaint against him. His role when the crime was being committed is being investigated. He will be produced before court today.'
The security guard has been identified as Pinaki Banerjee, a resident of Khardaha. He was on duty when the crime took place inside the college.
In her complaint, the victim stated that she was taken to the guard room forcefully by the three accused and the guard was instructed to step out.
She further stated that she was raped, physically assaulted and threatened with dire consequences if she opened her mouth. She added that the accused had made a video of her and threated to make it public if she went ahead and complained.
According to police sources, other students who were present near the union room of the college will also be questioned.
Ravik Bhattacharya is the Chief of Bureau of The Indian Express, Kolkata. Over 20 years of experience in the media industry and covered politics, crime, major incidents and issues, apart from investigative stories in West Bengal, Odisha, Assam and Andaman Nicobar islands. Ravik won the Ramnath Goenka Excellence in Journalism Award in 2007 for political reporting.
Ravik holds a bachelor degree with English Hons from Scottish Church College under Calcutta University and a PG diploma in mass communication from Jadavpur University. Ravik started his career with The Asian Age and then moved to The Statesman, The Telegraph and Hindustan Times. ... Read More
Hashtags
Try Our AI Features
Explore what Daily8 AI can do for you:
Comments
No comments yet...
Related Articles
Hindustan Times
2 hours ago
- Hindustan Times
Kolkata police set up SIT to probe into Kasba law college gang rape case
Kolkata: The Kolkata police on Saturday set up a five-member Special Investigation Team (SIT) to probe into the alleged gang-rape of a 24-year-old student inside a law college at Kasba in south Kolkata on Wednesday late evening. Police detain a BJP supporter ruling Bharatiya Janata Party during a protest over the alleged rape of a student at the South Calcutta Law College campus on Wednesday, in Kolkata, on Saurday. (AP) A senior police official said officials have found an incriminating video clip in one of the three mobile phones seized from the accused persons. 'We have found a video clipping of approximately 1 minute 30 seconds, which corroborates the statements made by the victim in her complaint,' said an official. A first-year student of South Calcutta Law College was allegedly gangraped on Wednesday in the security guard's room in the ground-floor of the college campus. Report of the victim's medical examination done in a state-run hospital has also corroborated her statements, officials said without divulging further details. On Thursday a contractual staff of the college Monojit Mishra (31) and two existing students, Zaib Ahmed (19) and Pramit Mukherjee (20) were arrested on Thursday on the basis of a complaint lodged by the victim. On Saturday a security guard of the college Pinaki Banerjee was also arrested. The woman in her complaint had alleged that Mishra showed her two videos which were captured while she was being stripped. 'I still fought back and then he (Mishra) showed me two videos of mine being naked when he raped me. He threatened me to show everyone these videos if I don't cooperate and I don't come whenever he calls me,' the victim had stated in her complaint. Meanwhile police have also collected footages of CCTv which covers the area outside the union room and the security guard's room. The footages are more than seven hour long starting from 3:30 pm on June 25. The victim had alleged that while she reached the college around 12:00 noon on Wednesday to fill up some forms for an upcoming examination, she was asked to stay back by Mishra. The crime took place between 7:30 pm and 10:50 pm. 'We have arrested a security guard of the college. This is the fourth arrest in connection with the case. The probe is ongoing,' a senior officer said. The victim had alleged that Mishra's aides, Ahmed and Mukherjee, allegedly locked the main gate of the college and forcibly took her to the guard's room. The security guard was allegedly asked to leave. In the guard's room, Mishra allegedly attempted to rape her. 'Mishra instructed Ahmed and Mukherjee to take me to the guard's room and make the guard sit outside. They did so,' she wrote in the complaint. 'The security guard did little to help the victim, nor did he raise an alarm or inform the college authorities or dial 100 to inform the police,' said an official. The National Commission for Women (NCW) which had taken suo moto cognizance of the case and had sought an action-taken-report from Kolkata's police commissioner on Friday, wrote a fresh letter to the state chief secretary on Saturday seeking the victim's medical reports within three days and security arrangement for the victim's family. Meanwhile the Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) announced that it would send a four-member team to Kolkata to probe into the incident which would submit a report to JP Nadda, BJP National President. The BJP also said that it wouldn't demand a CBI probe into the incident. 'I agree that the CBI wasn't successful in its probe into the rape and murder in RG Kar Hospital. . . We don't want a CBI probe. We want the Kolkata Police to probe into this. The policemen get their salary from the tax paid by the citizens. Let the police investigate and bring out the truth,' Agnimitra Paul, BJP legislator, said in a press conference at the BJP party office in Salt Lake. '@BJP4Bengal MLA @paulagnimitra1 declares that she and her party have NO FAITH in @BJP4India's puppet agency - the CBI. She claims that the @CBIHeadquarters FAILED to ensure justice or do their job properly in the RG Kar incident. Interestingly, she has now placed her trust in @WBPolice and @KolkataPolice for ensuring the safety and security of women. Well Madam, good to see reality finally sinking in!' the TMC wrote on X.
Time of India
2 hours ago
- Time of India
'This would not have happened if ... ': After Kaliyan Banerjee, TMC's Madan Mitra stirs row; blames victim in Kolkata gang-rape case
NEW DELHI: TMC leader Madan Mitra on Saturday, while defending his party, appeared to blame the victim in the Kolkata law college gang-rape case, saying, "If someone calls you when the college is closed, then don't go. " Addressing reporters in North 24 Parganas, the former West Bengal minister said the incident sent a message to girls about caution. 'If that girl had not gone there, this wouldn't have happened. If she had informed someone before going or had taken a couple of friends with her, then this wouldn't have happened,' he said. — ANI (@ANI) He further added, 'The one who committed this dirty deed took advantage of the situation.' Mitra also attempted to distance the party from the accused, saying, 'TMC is a big party. Someone or the other is associated with Trinamool everywhere... We get our photos taken with everyone, but what's inside a person, only a psychologist can tell.' His remarks came even as the alleged gang-rape of the 24-year-old law student continues to trigger public outrage and political backlash in West Bengal. The incident, which took place inside the premises of South Calcutta Law College, has drawn comparisons to the earlier RG Kar case, reviving grim memories of systemic lapses. According to the student's police complaint, she was raped by three men — Manojit Mishra, a former Trinamool Chhatra Parishad office-bearer now working on an ad hoc teaching assignment, and two junior students, Pramit Mukherjee and Zaib Ahmed. She alleged that the trio forced her into the college guard room, undressed and gang-raped her, filmed the assault, and threatened to leak the footage if she approached police. 'When I resisted, one of them hit me with a hockey stick,' she said. 'I touched his feet, but he did not let me go.' She also reported that she was confined for over three hours and suffered a panic attack. The assailants only allowed her to use an inhaler, denying her further help. All three accused were arrested within 24 hours. Later, the college security guard, Pinaki Banerjee, was also held. A five-member Special Investigation Team (SIT) was formed by Kolkata Police to probe the case. The accused have been remanded to police custody till July 1. The National Commission for Women (NCW) has taken suo motu cognisance of the incident and has demanded a time-bound investigation under the Bharatiya Nyaya Sanhita. BJP national president JP Nadda has also constituted a four-member inquiry team comprising Satpal Singh, Meenakshi Lekhi, Biplab Deb and Manan Mishra to visit the college and submit a detailed report. Meanwhile, BJP leaders across Bengal have mounted pressure on chief minister Mamata Banerjee. 'This incident reveals the character of TMC and their thoughts towards women. I demand Mamata Banerjee's immediate resignation,' said BJP MLA Shankar Ghosh. Union minister and West Bengal BJP president Sukanta Majumdar was detained by police while protesting the incident. 'This is the face of democracy in West Bengal... Mamata Banerjee has ruined it,' he said. BJP spokesperson Sambit Patra also hit out at the chief minister, saying, 'There is an air of disbelief about where Bengal is heading. Where there is a female chief minister, there ought to be sensitivity towards women, so why is there such cruelty?' The centring of blame on the victim by a senior TMC leader has deepened political tensions and drawn strong condemnation from opposition parties and civil society groups, who have demanded accountability, justice for the survivor, and an end to institutional negligence.
Mint
3 hours ago
- Mint
Kolkata gangrape case: Another TMC leader Madan Mitra makes SHOCKING remark, says ‘If that girl had not gone there…'
Kolkata gangrape case: Trinamool Congress leader Madan Mitra on Saturday said that the gangrape incident in Kolkata has sent a message to girls that they should not go to their college if it's closed and someone is calling them to offer them a position in the student unit. A female student was allegedly gang-raped inside the South Calcutta Law College in Kolkata's Kasba on Wednesday, June 25. 'This incident has sent a message to girls that if someone calls you when the college is closed offering you a position in the unit, then don't go, nothing good will come of it. If that girl had not gone there, this wouldn't have happened,' the TMC leader was quoted as saying by ANI. Blaming the law student for not informing before going out, Mitra said that if she did so the incident would not have happened. 'If she had informed someone before going or had taken a couple of friends with her, then this wouldn't have happened. The one who committed this dirty deed took advantage of the situation,' he said. Mitra's comments comes after TMC MP Kalyan Banerjee, already under fire for his 'boys will be boys' comment, said: 'If a friend rapes a friend, how can you ensure security?' The Trinamool leader distanced the party from the prime accused Manojit Mishra — a TMCP leader. 'TMC is a big party. Someone or the other is associated with Trinamool everywhere. We get our photos taken with everyone, but what's inside a person, only a psychologist can tell,' Mitra said. 'People get their photos clicked with TMC leaders and then start calling themselves TMC leaders too,' he added. The Kolkata police has formed a 5-member Special Investigation Team to probe into the Kolkata gangrape case involving the law student. The latest development came as the opposition parties mounted pressure on the ruling Trinamool Congress-led West Bengal Chief Minister Mamata Banerjee, and demanded her resignation and security for women at educational institutions. Assistant Commissioner of Police (ACP) Pradip Kumar Ghosal of South Suburban Division (SSD) will lead the SIT. The three accused, Manojit Mishra, Zaib Ahmed and Pramit Mukhopadhyay, whom the police have named, have been sent to police custody till July 1.
