NCPCR, Bengal child rights body spar over alleged rape, murder of tribal girl

A row has erupted over the alleged rape and murder of a tribal girl at Kaliaganj in West Bengal’s Uttar Dinjapur district with the National Commission for Protection of Child Rights (NCPCR) and the State Commission for Protection of Child Rights targeting each other over the incident.

A row has erupted over the alleged rape and murder of a tribal girl at Kaliaganj in West Bengal’s Uttar Dinjapur district with the National Commission for Protection of Child Rights (NCPCR) and the State Commission for Protection of Child Rights targeting each other over the incident.

On Sunday (April 23), NCPCR chairperson Priyank Kanoongo visited Kaliaganj and met the family members of the deceased teenager. Mr. Kanoongo said he spoke to the parents of the deceased and prima facie it seems the police had not recorded their statement. The NCPCR representatives said they were not allowed to meet the investigation officers and doctors who conducted the post-mortem.

Also Read: Prohibitory orders imposed in West Bengal’s Kaliaganj after protests over girl’s death

The West Bengal Commission for Protection of Child Rights (WBCPCR) accused the NCPCR of “doing politics over the dead bodies of children in West Bengal”. “Exposing an already distraught family to a large media despite their plea to be left alone to mourn. Child Rights? Shameful. The NCPCR team is taking a large contingent of media persons with them to the victim’s house in Kaliaganj in complete violation of Section 144 in place there! Shameful,” the WBCPCR said in a series of tweets. “I don’t want to comment on any incompetent body working at the behest of an incompetent government trying to protect the image of an incompetent CM,” Mr. Kanoongo said reacting to allegations of the WBCPCR.

This is not the first time the State and national child rights protection bodies have publicly criticised each other. A few weeks ago, Mr. Kanoongo had arrived in the State to investigate incidents of violence and sexual assault on children at Tiljala in Kolkata and Gazole in Malda and a similar public spat had ensued between the two quasi-judicial bodies.

 Meanwhile, prohibitory orders were imposed in parts of Kaliaganj. The region has been on the boil over the alleged rape and death of a minor girl from the Rajbanshi community with locals clashing with the police over the past few days. The minor had gone missing on April 20 and on April 21 her body was found in the area. The mother of the victim has demanded a probe by the Central Bureau of Investigation. The West Bengal police and Minister for Women and Child Development Sashi Panja had said prima facie it appeared that the girl consumed poison. Arrests have also been made by the police in connection with the incident.

Questions were also raised on how the police personnel were carrying the body of the girl when violence had erupted. Videos aired by local news channels showed the body being dragged on the streets by policemen amid stone pelting by locals. The Opposition, particularly the BJP, has targeted the West Bengal government over the incident. BJP leaders were not allowed to visit the area and meet the family members of the deceased. BJP leaders like Suvendu Adhikari had highlighted the Rajbanshi identity of the victim, targeting the Trinamool Congress government. Rajbanshi is a prominent community in north Bengal and has a sway in a few Lok Sabha seats.