The Times of India
written by Staff
Tuesday February 19, 2013
KOLKATA, A fast-track court on Tuesday framed charges of gang rape and criminal conspiracy against three people arrested in the politically controversial Park Street rape case, in which an Anglo-Indian woman was allegedly raped in 2012.
"The court today (Tuesday) framed the charges of gang-rape, criminal conspiracy and criminal intimidation against three of the accused namely Ruman Khan alias Tussie, Nasser Khan and Sumit Bajaj," said Anirban Guha Thakurta, counsel of the victim. Two people are yet to be arrested.
The victim, a 37-year-old single mother was allegedly gang-raped inside a moving car during the intervening night between Feb 5-6, 2012.
The police in the chargesheet submitted in May 2012 named five people, including Kader Khan as the prime accused. Khan and another accused Ali Khan are at large and yet to be arrested.
The trio of Ruman, Nasser and Bajaj were arrested Feb 18, 2012.
West Bengal chief ministerMamata Banerjee courted controversy after she dubbed the allegation as "cooked-up to malign her government".
But the police led by then Joint Commissioner of Police (Crime) Damayanti Sen cracked the case and apprehended three of the accused. Sen was later transferred out of the city police.
The Supreme Court earlier this year had denied bail to Bajaj and Nasser when they approached the apex court seeking the relief.
The trial in the case will begin March 2.
************************************
The Times of India
written by Staff
Monday February 18, 2013
The ruling Trinamool Congress's brazen meddling with police matters is driving West Bengal to anarchy. In the aftermath of the Garden Reach murder of a police officer, chief minister Mamata Banerjee has summarily removed police commissioner R K Pachnanda from office. Pachnanda's fault: his refusal to tailor the FIR to the diktat of the Trinamool high command, shielding the culprit who shot the sub-inspector in the midst of last week's violent political clashes over a college election. Within two days of the murder probe, Pachnanda was transferred, the video footage suggesting the culpability of Trinamool councillor Mohammad Iqbal, protected by a senior minister considered close to Mamata. As the police closed in on Iqbal, the government shunted Pachnanda out - ostensibly for delay in investigations - and transferred the case to the state CID.
The audacity of the move, that too in a case the police are investigating the murder of one of their own, reveals an absolute lack of willingness on the part of the state government to enforce the rule of law. That this isn't the first incident of its kind reinforces such a belief. The punishment delivered to Pachnanda bears an uncanny resemblance to the transfer of joint police commissioner Damayanti Sen last year, who had made progress on the Park Street gang-rape case. Ironically, Pachnanda who had then backed Mamata is now himself in the firing line.
Considering Bengal's predicament, governor M K Narayanan has rightly questioned Trinamool's competence to run a government. This May Mamata would complete two years in office. A far cry from the promised transformation, West Bengal is in a shambles, saddled with a bankrupt economy, runaway law and order, increasing political crimes and stifling party interference in governance. This terrible record can only end up bolstering the CPM, waiting in the wings.
No comments:
Post a Comment