Prime accused in Haridevpur ‘gangrape’ held; one still absconding

Kolkata: The prime accused in the Haridevpur gangrape case was arrested on Tuesday night from Burdwan Railway Station. However, another accused is still absconding.

The arrested accused, identified as Chandan Malik, is associated with a well-known Durga Puja committee in the city. A few months ago, the complainant came in contact with Malik, who allegedly promised to make her a member of the committee where he holds a portfolio.

According to the complaint, on Friday, Malik invited the woman to a birthday party. She was taken to a flat in the Regent Colony area, where another person, identified as Debangsu Biswas alias Deep, was present. However, no one else was there for the celebration. It is alleged that the flat belonged to Biswas, where the woman was raped and assaulted by the duo. After the incident, she was also locked inside a room.On Saturday morning, the woman managed to escape and later lodged a complaint against Malik and Biswas. Police raided Biswas’s flat and Malik’s residence but found neither of them. An extensive search was launched to trace the accused.

On Tuesday night, acting on a tip-off and with technical support, police arrested Malik at Burdwan Railway Station. He is currently being interrogated to locate Biswas, who remains absconding.