The alleged rape and murder of a nine-year-old girl at Jaynagar, amid allegations of police inaction when she was first reported missing, have brought the state government under Opposition fire while the local Trinamool MLA and MP faced
public outrage.

The brutality — which comes within two months of the August 9 rape and murder of a junior doctor at RG Kar Hospital — and the police’s failure to save the child prompted Opposition parties to attack chief minister Mamata Banerjee, who helms the home department too.

BJP leader Suvendu Adhikari took to X with the hashtag “MamataMustResign”.

“It seems that @WBPolice haven’t learned anything from the unfortunate RG Kar incident…. The family members along with some neighbours went to the Police Camp…. Rather than responding quickly, the said Police personnels seemed uninterested and were trying to sidetrack from their responsibility,” he wrote.

A member of the girl’s family said that police officers had forced them to shuttle between the Jaynagar and Kultali police stations on the issue of jurisdiction.

Adhikari wrote: “Later on the villagers themselves launched a search operation for the missing child and found the child’s body at dawn from a pond at Mahismari. Had the Police been active, the child could have been rescued alive….”

The CPM, which rushed leaders of its frontal organisations including youth leader Minakshi Mukherjee to Jaynagar, said the public’s rage reflected a lack of trust in the police and the ruling party.

“Recurring rapes and murders, this time involving a minor, have lowered our head before the entire nation.... The police and the state home department must ponder why the people’s rage is repeatedly directed against the cops. There is a lack of faith in the police,” CPM state secretary Md Salim told The Telegraph.

“This is the doing of the ruling party because they have been using the police to do the dirty job of covering up such crimes…. This has led to the people directing their anger at the police instead of the offender.”

An angry villager flashes a chappal at police and Trinamool leaders at Jaynagar in South 24-Parganas on Saturday. Picture by Mehaboob Gazi

A mob vandalised and torched a police outpost in Jaynagar.

“The police should have taken suo motu cognisance of the incident…. Instead, despite public outrage they allowed the ruling party to take control of the victim’s family and the body,” Salim said.

“We will move Calcutta High Court on Monday, while a team of lawyers and those associated with the ongoing doctors’ movement will visit Jaynagar tomorrow (Sunday) to ensure that Trinamool and the police do not settle the crime.”

The Opposition parties have decided to hit the streets amid the festive season. State BJP leaders said they would organise a “thana gherao” programme at Kultali on Sunday, and that state unit president Sukanta Majumdar would be present.

Majumdar urged people to rise in protest and demand Mamata’s resignation.

Angry villagers chased away Kultali MLA Ganesh Chandra Mondal of Trinamool when he arrived to meet the girl’s father.

Jaynagar MP Pratima Mondal faced “go back” slogans when she arrived at the rural hospital from where the body was later brought to Calcutta for an autopsy.

“I haven’t said anything to anyone. They are shouting.... I am not afraid of this,” Pratima later said.

Ganesh, the MLA, denied being chased by angry villagers.

“We want strict punishment for the culprits. Local people were angry and I don’t blame them. They have reason to be angry but some political parties are trying to extract political mileage. People should allow the police to investigate the crime properly,” he said.

Unlike Pratima, Minakshi and BJP leader Agnimitra Paul were allowed to meet the victim’s father at the hospital.

After Paul returned from the hospital, she got into a public spat with Pratima, who stood surrounded by a group of Trinamool supporters with a large number of villagers shouting at her to leave the place.

Paul was heard asking the MP: “Why are the police inactive? You need to answer.”

Bengal Congress chief Subhankar Sarkar visited Jaynagar in the evening and said he was “concerned about the direction in which this state is heading”.

Sarkar demanded compensation for the victim’s family and accountability for the police officers who had failed to act on the missing person complaint.

Trinamool described the atrocity as a “social problem”.

“The mysterious death of the girl from Jaynagar is condemnable. This is a social problem, and we demand a swift trial and harsh punishment for the culprits,” Kunal Ghosh said.

“The police should investigate the villagers’ claim that their complaint was initially refused. If any wrongdoing occurred, the administration must take strict action against the police personnel involved.”

Ghosh accused the Opposition of exploiting the situation for political gain and asked people not to fall into their “trap”.

“People need to be vigilant about the BJP and the CPM. These parties, with their history of rape and murder, are now posing as saints and using this incident to create chaos. There is a conspiracy to disrupt peace during the festive season,” Ghosh alleged.