Kolkata:
A day after a woman in her mid-30s alleged that she was raped in a car in Kolkata on the night of February 5, chief minister Mamata Banerjee has reacted strongly to the allegations. An upset Ms Banerjee said the entire incident has been created or fabricated to malign her government. The chief minister's comments come on a day the police said there were some "inconsistencies" in the case and investigations are on to "find the truth".
Earlier today, based on the woman's complaint, two men were detained by the Kolkata police in connection with the case. The victim reportedly identified one of them as her alleged rapist.
The woman says she was waiting for a taxi outside a nightclub on Park Street when she was offered a lift by a man who she had met at the night club. Initially, there were two men in the car. But when she got into the back seat, three other men got in. While one man assaulted her, the others allegedly held her down, she claims. When she tried to raise an alarm, the men hit her and threatened her with a gun, she added. She says she was later thrown out of the car.
The woman then tracked down some of her alleged assaulters on Facebook. She revealed their names and took snapshots of their photographs to the police to file a complaint against them. But police say there are discrepancies in her claims. The man she alleges offered her the lift has been out of the country, according to his family. "Records prove that he was in Canada since January 1," Kolkata Police Commissioner RK Pachnanda said today.
He also said that preliminary examination of the mobile phone records of the detained men indicate that they were not present at Park Street at the time the woman claims she was raped.
The woman had also said that she was thrown out of the vehicle by the accused at about 3:30 am at Exide crossing and that, after a few minutes she got a taxi and went home. But it has now emerged that she first went to a friend's place who subsequently dropped her home.
While the incident happened on the night of February 5, the woman first went to the police station on February 8. She says she was traumatised and in shock. While her complaint was registered, she and her relatives have alleged that the police misbehaved with her and mocked her for going to a night club. Saying that an enquiry would be held into the allegation, Mr Pachnanda said, "It is incorrect to say there was police and government inaction."
On February 11, she was supposed to have gone for a medical test but the specialist was not available. Other doctors said that since a few days had gone by since her rape, it would be hard to gather medical evidence. She was finally tested on Tuesday.