Kolkata: West Bengal Police has filed a 702-page chargesheet before a special POCSO court after completing its investigation into the alleged gangrape and murder of a girl at Baruipur in South 24 Parganas district, a sen…

Kolkata: West Bengal Police has filed a 702-page chargesheet before a special POCSO court after completing its investigation into the alleged gangrape and murder of a girl at Baruipur in South 24 Parganas district, a senior police officer said on Thursday.The chargesheet was submitted before the Baruipur Special POCSO Court on August 31, exactly 60 days after the incident and around eight weeks after the FIR was lodged, said Partha Ghosh, Additional SP Zonal, Baruipur Police District.”We have withheld the identity of the victim and her relatives as per provisions under Section 23 of the POCSO Act,” he added.Baruipur rape-murder: CPI(M) leader held for violence, says police action ‘politically motivated’The case, which initially led to the arrest of four accused, currently concerns three suspects following the death of prime accused Prabhas Mondal in an encounter with police during the course of investigation.The accused have been charged under relevant sections of the Bharatiya Nyaya Sanhita (BNS) involving kidnapping, rape and gangrape on minor, murder, evidence disappearance and criminal conspiracy, besides Section 6 of the Protection of Children from Sexual Offences (POCSO) Act governing aggravated sexual assault, police said.The gruesome crime took place on July 4 when the 12-year-old girl went missing from Surjapur area of Baruipur after family members saw her for the last time when she went out to buy a birthday gift for a friend.Her body, stuffed in a sack, was recovered from a pond the following afternoon, triggering days of widespread outrage — which included the mob lynching of an innocent man — and prompting the state government to constitute a Special Investigation Team (SIT).Police subsequently arrested four people in connection with the case: Prabhas Mondal, Anand Sardar, Dibakar Sardar, and Kabir Mollah.The case took a dramatic turn on the night of July 8 when Mondal was taken to the crime scene as part of the reconstruction of the incident.According to police, Mondal suddenly snatched a firearm from the personnel accompanying him, fired a shot and tried to escape.He sustained critical injuries after police allegedly fired back in response, with doctors declaring him dead at the Baruipur Hospital.The post-mortem examination on the victim subsequently brought to light the extent of the alleged assault on the girl, with police sources stating that the report found evidence of rape and extreme physical assault.There were multiple injuries on her face and body, along with bite and scratch marks.The report also indicated that the minor was killed after she was stuffed inside a sack and thrown into the pond while she was unconscious but alive, adding another grim dimension to the case.Doctors noted deep injuries to her genital area as well as serious injuries to her head. Excessive blood loss and asphyxia caused by drowning were cited as the primary causes of death.

Source: Deccan Herald