Mamata, Abhishek laud judiciary, police for death sentence of POCSO accused
Kolkata: Chief Minister Mamata Banerjee on Friday praised the judiciary and the police after a POCSO accused was given death sentence by a Chinsurah court in
Hooghly district.
Banerjee wrote the following on X: “Today, the Court has pronounced death sentence for the convict who had raped and murdered the small girl of Gurap and I thank the Judiciary for that. I thank Hooghly Rural District Police for their swift action and thorough probe that ensured speedy trial and conviction in 54 days. My heart goes to the family, and I share their pain and longing. A rapist has no place in our world. All of us together will make it a safer place for our children through stringent law, social reforms, effective and unforgiving administration. No such crime will go unpunished.”
Trinamool Congress national general secretary, Abhishek Banerjee wrote on X: “In Bengal, JUSTICE is delivered SWIFTLY, DECISIVELY and UNCOMPROMISINGLY. Today, the Hooghly POCSO Court pronounced the death sentence for the perpetrator responsible for the heinous rape and murder of a minor girl from Gurap. I congratulate the Hooghly Rural District Police team led by Shri Kamanasish Sen - IPS, for their meticulous investigation, presenting an airtight case in court and ensuring TRIAL and CONVICTION within a RECORD 54 DAYS. This serves as a powerful reminder that while others may offer mere lip service to NARI SURAKSHA, Bengal stands firm with a ZERO TOLERANCE APPROACH to crimes against women.”
It was learnt that the death was pronounced by judge Chandraprabha Bhattacharya of the POCSO court at Chinsurah in Hooghly district on Friday, exactly 55 days after the crime took place. The victim’s mother reportedly told the media after the sentence was pronounced that January 17 is also the birthday of her daughter. She said she had left the entire matter in the hands of the police and is happy with the court’s verdict which did justice to her daughter.
In the case of Gurap, the girl is learnt to have gone missing from her residence on November 24 last year. Her body was eventually recovered from the residence of the accused who was a neighbour of the victim. The verdict also brought joy to the villagers who were seen thanking the investigating officers and the public prosecutor outside the court.
Such a verdict comes a day before the Sealdah court is set to give its verdict in the RG Kar rape and murder case in Kolkata where a trainee doctor was the victim. A civic volunteer Sanjoy Roy was found to be the only accused in the ghastly crime by both the police
and the CBI.
