Kolkata mayor’s niece breaks traffic rules twice in four hours, ‘assaults’ cop

Even though, Debapriya and four of her friends, including two youths, have been booked for a non-bailable offence, no arrests were made till the last reports came in.

[related-post]

According to police, mayor’s niece Debapriya was travelling in her car along with four friends allegedly under the influence of alcohol last night. Their vehicle jumped a traffic signal at Rash Behari crossing around 10pm following which a traffic constable stopped the car and asked for the driving license and other documents. However, the constable alleged that Debapriya got down and started abusing him for stopping her car. As per the police, the she was drunk and also allegedly tried to snatch the constable’s notebook. Soon, some locals gathered at the spot following which she toned down. Debapriya and others were allowed to go after being slapped with a fine.

Later around 12.30am, she and her friends again broke the traffic rules and hit a footpath near Keoratala crematorium in South Kolkata, police said, adding the vehicle intercepted and all five occupants were taken to Tollygunge police station. While the two youths were detained at the police station till morning, the three girls were handed over to their guardians in the wee hours Saturday. “Women cannot be arrested between the time of sunset to sunrise,” a police official said.

Debapriya, however, lodged a general diary against the police officials for allegedly “misbehaving with her and abusing her”. Meanwhile, police lodged a suo motu complaint against Debapriya and her friends under section 353 (assault or criminal force to deter public servant from discharge of his duty).

“A case has been lodged against her and it is being investigated,” said Surajit Kar Purakayastha, Kolkata police commissioner.
When contacted Sovan Chatterjee said. “I have heard that a traffic signal was broken and that a case for traffic rule violation has been lodged. Law will take its own course.”

Denying the allegations, Debapriya said,“There is no evidence that I was driving the car under the influence of alcohol. Neither did I hit any pedestrian. It is a trap to frame me.”

In a similar incident in 2012, Akash Banerjee, who claimed to be the nephew of Chief Minister Mamata Banerjee was arrested for slapping a traffic police officer who had stopped his car.