CM Mamata Banerjee says ‘girls should not be allowed to go out at night’ in first reaction to Durgapur rape case
A second-year medical student from Odisha was allegedly gang-raped by unidentified men outside her college campus in West Bengal's Durgapur on Friday night
West Bengal CM Mamata Banerjee, reacted to the Durgapur rape case on Sunday, stating that “girls should not be allowed to go outside at night," and added that “whoever is guilty will be punished strictly.”
On Friday night, October 10, a second-year medical student from Odisha was allegedly gang-raped by unidentified men outside her college campus in West Bengal's Durgapur.
“... The girls should not be allowed to go outside (college) at night. They have to protect themselves also. There is a forest area. Police are searching all the people. Nobody will be excused. Whoever is guilty will be punished strictly," CM Mamata Banerjee told reporters on Sunday.
Earlier in the day, three people were arrested in connection with the alleged gang-rape case.
What happened in Durgapur?
The medical student – aged 20-years-old – hails from Odisha's Jaleswar and is enrolled at a private medical college. She was allegedly gang-raped by three men outside her college campus on Friday, said police officials.
She had gone out for dinner with a friend when the incident took place around 10 pm.
The group of men snatched the Odisha girl's phone and took her to a jungle outside the medical college's campus, where they allegedly raped the student, officials had told PTI.
“One of her classmates took her out on the pretext of getting something to eat, but when two or three other men arrived, he abandoned her and fled. They raped her,” the student's father also told reporters.
Rape-victim ‘unable to walk, on bedrest’
According to ANI, the gangrape victim's father said on Sunday said that her daughter is currently unable to walk and is on bedrest, receiving medical treatment.
How did the incident happen?
According to police, the rape-victim's friend left her alone when three unidentified men at an area near the campus. They allegedly snatched her phone and took her to a jungle outside the medical college's campus, where they raped the Odisha girl, said officials.
How Odisha CM reacted
The alleged gang-rape drew a sharp reaction from Odisha Chief Minister Mohan Charan Majhi. He condemned the incident, terming it "highly condemnable and painful."
In a post on X, Majhi had urged West Bengal Chief Minister Mamata Banerjee to ensure exemplary action is taken against the accused in accordance with the law.