Siliguri: Yuva Morcha leader accused of sexually assaulting 16-year-old karate student

Siliguri: A Bharatiya Janata Yuva Morcha (BJYM) leader of Siliguri, who is also a karate instructor, has been accused of sexually assaulting one of his minor students. The incident occurred in the Siliguri area. The accused has been identified as Ramchandra Chhetri.

Papiya Ghosh, the president of the Darjeeling District Trinamool Congress (Plains), demanded the immediate arrest of the accused. She went to the victim’s house and met the family members. “We demand strict punishment for the accused. The accused is a worker of the BJYM. Although we did not want to include politics in this, we want the accused to be arrested soon and be charged under the POCSO Act,” said Papiya Ghosh.

The 16-year-old student has been taking her karate lessons from Ramchandra Chhetri in Siliguri since 2021. The student was allegedly subjected to sexual assault multiple times over the past three years.

Initially, the student was assaulted by her instructor while participating in a competition abroad. In a recent incident, the student refused to participate in another competition. Upon being asked the reason, the student narrated the entire ordeal to her family.

On September 22, the family lodged a written complaint against the accused instructor at the local police station. Since then, the accused has been absconding.

On Wednesday, local residents staged a protest at the police station demanding the immediate arrest of the culprit. The police have started an investigation into the incident.