A CLASS VIII girl student was allegedly kidnapped and raped by a youth late Saturday at a village in Murshidabad’s Beldanga area.
While the family has lodged a complaint with Beldanga police station, the accused, identified as Lalchand Sheikh, is absconding. According to the family, the accused is a local Trinamool Congress leader, a charge the party has denied. The girl has been sent for a medical test, the report of which is yet to arrive.
“She girl was asked to babysit a neighbour’s child last night. She was on her way to their place when one Lalchand Sheikh caught hold of her and gagged her with a piece of cloth. She was dragged to the adjoining field and raped,” the girl’s uncle said.
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“Later, the accused showed her a dagger and threatened to slit her throat if she told anyone about the incident. But she returned home and told her family,” he added.
Alleging police inaction, the girl’s mother said: “He is a married man and a Trinamool leader of the area. He had set his eyes on my daughter for a long time. Police are not arresting him because of his political influence.”
A district Trinamool leader, however, said: “Lalchand has nothing to do with Trinamool. He is not a member of the party. We have nothing to say. Let the police investigate and law will take its own course. If he is guilty, police will arrest and prosecute him. Why should we have an issue about it?”
“We have raided Lalchand Sheikh’s house. He, along with some other family members, are absconding,” said an officer of of Beldanga police station.
“We are trying to track his cellphone. We hope to arrest him soon,” he added.