A man accused in the alleged rape and murder of an 11-year-old girl in West Bengal’s Baruipur was shot dead during an alleged encounter with police on Wednesday after he tried to seize an officer’s firearm while investigators were reconstructing the crime scene, police said.
District police said the accused, Prabhas Mondal, attempted to snatch a weapon and open fire on officers during the reconstruction. Police responded by firing at him, and he was later declared dead at a hospital.
Mondal was one of three men arrested in connection with the alleged rape and murder of the girl, whose body was found inside a sack in a pond in the Surjyapur area of South 24 Parganas district, a day after she was reported missing.
The case was initially registered as a missing person complaint before investigators added charges including rape, gang rape, murder, destruction of evidence and offences under the Protection of Children from Sexual Offences (POCSO) Act.
The incident sparked protests in the area, with demonstrators blocking roads and railway tracks, setting tyres ablaze and damaging police vehicles.
During the unrest, local residents allegedly assaulted two suspects. A 26-year-old man suspected of having links to the accused was also beaten to death by a mob on Sunday. State officials later said the man was not involved in the crime.
Police also detained a local Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) leader on allegations that he helped one of the accused escape from a police outpost during the violence. Authorities alleged that the prime accused fled amid the chaos but was arrested later.
The West Bengal government has formed a Special Investigation Team led by an additional superintendent of police to investigate the case. The investigation is ongoing.
The killing also prompted criticism on social media, where some users alleged, without providing evidence, that the police had eliminated a key accused to protect other suspects allegedly linked to the ruling party.
On Wednesday, Mahua Moitra, an MP from the opposition All India Trinamool Congress, alleged that the West Bengal Police had carried out an “encounter killing” to silence a key accused, whom she described as the “only eyewitness” in the case. She also claimed it was the first such alleged encounter killing in the state’s history and said West Bengal had “officially become UP 2.0”.
Authorities have not commented on the allegations.
Meanwhile, Mondal’s mother has refused to accept his mortal remains, saying that “he received what his actions warranted”.
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