A court in Hooghly district on Friday awarded the death penalty to a 45-year-old man for raping and murdering a minor girl in November last year.
Chandraprova Chakraborty, the additional district and session judge of the Pocso court at Chinsurah, pronounced the sentence within 54 days of the crime. Ashok Singh had raped and murdered the five-year-old after luring her with a packet of potato chips on November 24.
The verdict came a day before the Sealdah court was scheduled to announce its judgment on the rape and the murder of a junior doctor at R.G. Kar Medical College and Hospital on August 9.
Chief minister Mamata Banerjee and her nephew Abhishek hailed Hooghly rural district police and its chief Kamanasish Sen for the speedy investigation and for ensuring the capital punishment for the accused within a very short time.
"I thank Hooghly Rural District Police for their swift action and thorough probe that ensured speedy trial and conviction in 54 days. My heart goes to the family, and I share their pain and longing," Mamata wrote on her X handle on Friday evening.
"A rapist has no place in our world. All of us together will make it a safer place for our children through stringent law, social reforms, effective and unforgiving administration. No such crime will go unpunished," she added.
The Hooghly verdict is being billed as the fastest conviction of a rapist as the police ensured the completion of the investigation within 13 days and the capital punishment of the accused within 54 days by producing the necessary evidence in the court.
Earlier, in the case of the rape and murder of a Class IV student at Kultali of South 24-Parganas, a court at Baruipur had awarded the death penalty to the accused within 62 days of the crime.
Abhishek Banerjee, the national general secretary of the Trinamool Congres, hailed Bengal's "zero-tolerance approach to crimes against women".
"This serves as a powerful reminder that while others may offer mere lip service to NARI SURAKSHA, Bengal stands firm with a ZERO TOLERANCE APPROACH to crimes against women," the Diamond Harbour MP wrote on X on Friday.
The leader of the Opposition, Suvendu Adhikari, welcomed the judgment but said the capital punishment awarded by lower courts was commuted by higher courts because of the apathy of public prosecutors. He gave the example of how those accused in the Kamduni rape and murder incident were relieved of the gallows because of the alleged state's failure.
"Madam CM, why are you so eager to promote the Death Sentence so early. Let's wait for at least 10 years to see if the convict is actually hanged or acquitted just like the convicts of Kamduni Case," Adhikari wrote on his X handle.
A senior police officer said the punishment was ensured within a very short period as the Hooghly rural police had not delayed the investigation and had taken all possible steps to file the chargesheet as soon as possible.
"Good teamwork brought great relief to us. We ensured capital punishment for the rape and murder accused in a very short period.... I thank both the judiciary and our public prosecutors who helped us deliver justice for the parents of the minor girl," said Hooghly rural police SP Kamansish Sen, who personally monitored the case from Day One.
The mother of the girl said she was happy with the judgment that came on the birthday of her five-year-old daughter.
"We kept our faith in the police who finally ensured punishment for the culprit who brutalised my daughter. My daughter loved to have cake that I could not offer her this year," said the mother.