The court also asked the government to provide security to the complainants and their families.
The Calcutta High Court on Tuesday directed the West Bengal government to produce before it progress reports and case diaries of five recent cases of rape, gang rape and attempts to rape in different parts of the state. The court also asked the government to provide security to the complainants and their families.
Seeking investigation by an independent agency or a court-monitored probe, petitioners in a PIL claimed that a tribal girl was gangraped at Shantiniketan in Birbhum district on April 15, while a woman was raped at Namkhana in South 24 Parganas district.
The PIL also said that a physically challenged woman was allegedly raped at Pingla in Paschim Medinipur district, and another woman went through the ordeal at Netra in South 24 Parganas.
The petitioners flagged another incident of attempted rape at Maynaguri in Jalpaiguri district, in which the woman attempted suicide after being apparently threatened by the perpetrator.
A division bench, comprising Chief Justice Prakash Shrivastava and Justice R Bharadwaj, after hearing the parties, directed that progress reports of investigation and diaries of all five cases be produced before it by April 22, when the matter will be heard again.
The state government's lawyer submitted that action has been taken by the local police in all five cases and that arrests have been recently made taking note of complaints at Namkhana, Santiniketan and Netra.
He further submitted that a prayer has been made by the prosecution before the appropriate court in Jalpaiguri, seeking cancellation of the bail of the accused in the Maynaguri incident, which was recorded in late February.
The lawyer added that police protection has been provided to the complainants.
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