In a chilling development from South Calcutta Law College, Kolkata Police arrested a 55-year-old security guard on Saturday in connection with the gang-rape of a 24-year-old first-year law student, bringing the total number of arrests in the case to four.
The incident, which occurred on the evening of June 25, took place inside the college’s security guard room, where the survivor was allegedly raped by Monojit Mishra, a 31-year-old former student and practising lawyer. Two other students — Zaib Ahmed (19) and Pramit Mukherjee (20) — are accused of aiding the assault.
Police sources confirmed that Pinaki Banerjee, the arrested security guard, was present on campus at the time but failed to act. Investigators say he left his post at the request of the prime accused, leaving the survivor vulnerable. “His negligence was established during questioning,” a senior officer said. “Guard of the Law College, Pinaki Banerjee (55) has also been arrested in the case,” Kolkata Police told news agency ANI.
How the Incident Took Place?
The survivor alleged that she was dragged into the guard’s room after she had come to campus to fill out a form. The main gate of the college was locked during the assault, and the security guard remained outside despite her cries for help. She said she was undressed and raped, while the two students stood by and recorded the assault on mobile phones.
According to her complaint, Mishra had earlier proposed marriage to her, which she refused. She claimed this rejection provoked the violent act. Following the assault, she was blackmailed with the recorded footage. Her ordeal, she said, lasted from 7:30 pm to 10:50 pm, and at one point she struggled to breathe and pleaded for medical assistance. The accused eventually brought her an inhaler from a nearby medical store but continued the abuse.
The medical examination conducted on June 27 corroborated the survivor’s account, confirming forceful penetration, bite marks, nail scratches, and bruising around the neck, a senior police official said. “The evidence corroborated what the victim alleged in her complaint lodged with the Kasba Police Station,” the officer added.
Chief Public Prosecutor’s Stance on the Case
According to Chief Public Prosecutor Sourin Ghosal, the legal framework is clear: all individuals involved in such an act are culpable. “According to a Supreme Court judgement, all persons in a group involved in cases of gang rape must be held liable, even if all of them did not commit the act of rape. In this case, two other persons helped in the rape. So this is a case of gang rape, and they are also accused in the case,” Ghosal told PTI.
The three men — Mishra, Ahmed, and Mukherjee — were presented in court earlier this week and have been remanded to police custody until July 1.
The incident has triggered widespread outrage, bringing back memories of the rape and murder of an intern at RG Kar Medical College last year. It has also ignited a political firestorm, with the Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) criticising the Trinamool Congress (TMC) for sheltering criminals within its student wing. Mishra was reportedly a former unit president of the TMC’s student arm (TMCP) at the law college.
The investigation remains ongoing, and the Kolkata Police have assured that all those involved will be held accountable.
