Out With Friend, Medical Student Gang-Raped Near Private College In Bengal

A second-year MBBS student from Odisha was gang-raped near a private medical college in West Bengal's Durgapur on Friday night.

Officials said the student, who is from Jaleswar in Odisha and studies at the IQ City Medical College in Durgapur's Shivapur area, had gone out with a male friend when some men accosted them near the gate of the college around 8.30 pm on Friday, took the woman to a wooded area, and raped her. The 23-year-old's father said her friend fled and the family suspects he is also involved.  

In the police complaint, the survivor's father said her friend "misled her and took her to a vacant place under false pretexts". He said the attackers also snatched his daughter's mobile phone and took Rs 5,000 from her.

The student was then admitted to a hospital in Durgapur, where her condition is said to be critical. 

Officials said on Saturday that they have started an investigation and have begun questioning several people, including the survivor's friend. The statement of the survivor has also been recorded. 

West Bengal Minister for Women and Child Development and Trinamool Congress leader Shashi Panja said the student is undergoing medical treatment and will be given psychological counselling as well.

"The parents have expressed faith in the police investigation. Such crimes should not be politicised. Unfortunately, the BJP always views such incidents through a political lens," she said after the local unit of the BJP staged a protest in Durgapur.

A report by news agency PTI said the state health department has sought a report from the college, and a team from the National Commission for Women (NCW) is heading to Durgapur to meet the survivor and her parents.

"Crime against women is on the rise in Bengal. The police are not taking any proactive steps in such cases. This is quite unfortunate. I will request the chief minister to come forward and work in tandem to arrest the rise of such crimes," the report quoted NCW member Archana Majumdar as saying. 

Women's Safety

The Trinamool Congress government in West Bengal has been facing flak over the safety of women in the state, especially after two rape cases on college campuses in Kolkata

In July, a law student was allegedly gang-raped on the premises of the South Calcutta Law College in Kolkata's Kasba area. A former student with alleged political links, two students and a security guard were arrested.

In August last year, the rape and murder of a 31-year-old post-graduate trainee doctor at state-run RG Kar Medical College and Hospital in Kolkata led to sustained protests in the state and across the country. A civic police volunteer, Sanjay Roy, was arrested and sentenced to life imprisonment.