West Bengal CM Mamata ‘pulls up’ cops for cracking rape case

Two senior police officers have been made to pay the price for solving a rape case that Chief Minister Mamata Banerjee had said was a "fabricated story".

Detective chief Dayamanti Sen and joint commissioner, HQ, Javed Shamim stood at the Writers Building rostrum on Monday and issued a clarification that no one had asked for.

A section of officers feels Sen and Shamim were pulled up by Mamata for the embarrassment she faced when the case was cracked.

Sen and Shamim, looking visibly upset, explained three points: that the CM had not intervened in the probe, that there was no "groupism" in the force, and that the police acted unitedly under the command of commissioner R K Pachnanda. As it remained unexplained who asked them to clarify and why, their unusual conduct became a talking point in the corridors of power.

"The CM has never interfered in this investigation. What is happening now is distracting us from the main issue. The groupism that is being attributed to is totally misleading and incorrect. That is what is we felt. That is why an appointment was sought," Shamim said.

Both the officers said they had sought a meeting with the CM but insiders say they were summoned to Mamata's chamber and hauled over the coals for an hour. When they emerged, Sen looked shaken.

Only 48 hours earlier, Sen and her team were upbeat after cracking the rape case. The victim had alleged that the crime had taken place on February 6 and that the police sat on her report for over a week. On February 16, even as a forensic report confirmed assault on the woman, the CM said the case had been cooked up to malign her government. Transport minister Madan Mitra even went to the extent of questioning the victim's character.

On February 18, Sen announced that the case had been solved and three suspects arrested. This was out of sync with what the CM had said. There wasn't a word of praise from Mamata. But the media, the people and the victim feted Sen as a "champ and a tigress".

- Asian Tribune -

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