PILs Filed Before Calcutta High Court Seeking CBI Probe Into 5 Rape Cases Reported This Month In West Bengal

A batch of Public Interest Litigation (PIL) petitions have been filed before the Calcutta High Court on Monday, seeking a CBI probe into 5 recent rape cases that are reported in various districts of West Bengal this month. 

Incidents of rape have been reported to have taken place at Netra and Namkhana villages in South 24 Parganas district, at Pingla in West Midnapore district, at a village near Santiniketan in Birbhum district and at Mainaguri of Jalpaiguri district in West Bengal in the last few weeks.

The concerned counsels appearing for the petitioners approached the Division Bench comprising Chief Justice Prakasha Shrivastava and Justice Rajarshi Bharadwaj on Monday afternoon and apprised the Bench that the petitions have been filed seeking a CBI probe into the recent rape cases. 

Senior advocate Pinky Anand informed the Bench that a woman had been gang-raped and subsequently murdered at Namkhana village in South 24 Parganas district and accordingly sought the Court's intervention in the matter. She further prayed before the Court to list the petition for hearing on Tuesday considering the urgency of the matter. 

Pursuant to the submissions by the counsels, the Chief Justice remarked orally, "Give the mentioning slip, we will consider it".

The batch of petitions are likely to be heard on Tuesday morning. 

It may be noted that last week,  the High Court had ordered a CBI investigation into the Hanshkhali gangrape and murder case wherein the victim had allegedly been raped by the son of an influential political leader of the ruling TMC party and a member of the Gaza Gram Panchayat. 

Furthermore, the High Court last week had also asked IPS officer Damayanti Sen to oversee the probe in Deganga, Matia, Ingrejbazar and Banshdroni rape cases in West Bengal.

At Pingla in West Midnapore district on April 11, an alleged rape attempt was made on a differently-abled woman by a local panchayat member said to have affiliation to the Trinamool Congress.

Furthermore, a 40-year-old woman was allegedly gang-raped by five men in West Bengal's Namkhana village on April 8 and an attempt had also been made to burn her alive. 

Additionally, a tribal girl was reportedly gang-raped in Santiniketan in Birbhum district by at least five men when she was returning home from a village fair.