Kolkata rape case: Main accused Monojit Mishra is a ‘history-sheeter’ with past cases of harassment, assault, and theft

KOlkata jurisprudence has revealed that Monojit Mishra, the briny accused in the alleged gangrape of a 24-year-old law pupil at due south Calcutta Law College, has a criminal record with multiple past charges. Mishra has reportedly been chargesheeted in several cases including harassment of women, assault, vandalism, and theft.“Monojit Mishra is a history-sheeter with several cases and chargesheets against him in the Kolkata Police jurisdiction,” The Telegraph quoted a senior officer as saying.The police said he has multiple cases registered across Kalighat, Kasba, Alipore, Haridevpur, and Tollygunge police stations.Police have arrested Mishra and two others on charges of sexual assault of a first-year law student on the college premises on June 25. The crime occurred inside a security guard’s room between 7.30 and 10.50 PM. Mishra allegedly pressured her to marry him and, after she refused, threatened to kill her boyfriend and get her parents arrested under false accusations.Also Read | ‘Forceful penetration, bite marks’: Medical test corroborates gang-rape allegation by Kolkata law studentMishra, 31, is a practising criminal lawyer at the Alipore court. He also identifies himself on social media as a former chief of the Trinamool Congress’s student wing (TMC) at the law college. Though he studied at the college four years ago, he was reportedly engaged with the college on a casual basis until recently. The Trinamool Congress has since distanced itself from him.Past cases against Monojit MishraCiting police records, The Telegraph report said that in 2019, Mishra allegedly ripped a woman’s clothes inside South Calcutta Law College, for which a chargesheet was filed. Also Read | Forced penetration confirmed, SIT formed: Kolkata student gangrape probe so farHe was also accused of theft that same year, specifically, stealing a gold chain, perfume, a music system, and spectacles from a friend’s home in Haridevpur on New Year’s Eve. The FIR in that case was filed in the first week of January 2020, and police later chargesheeted him. In another incident, The Telegraph reported that he allegedly harassed a woman in Kasba in March 2022. Most recently, in May 2024, the law college administration filed a complaint against him for assaulting a security guard and vandalising property on campus. Also Read | Kolkata gang-rape case: Accused’s father backs punishment if son found guiltySeparately, The Times of India reported that in 2017, Mishra was accused of damaging the principal’s office, although no police case was registered at that time.4 arrested in Kolkata gangrape caseKolkata Police have formed a five-member special investigation team (SIT) led by an officer of assistant commissioner rank to probe the case. “An SIT has been formed to probe into the alleged crime. It will start its investigation immediately,” said a senior police officer.Also Read | FIR details horror of Kolkata law student’s gangrape: 'I touched his feet, he didn’t let go’Police have arrested four people: Mishra, who is the main accused; Zaib Ahmed (19) and Pramit Mukherjee (20), both students at the college; and Pinaki Banerjee, the security guard.A medical examination at a state-run hospital has supported the woman’s claims, police said. A senior officer added that investigators recovered an incriminating video clip from one of the accused's mobile phones, around 1 minute and 30 seconds long. “We have found a video clip... Which corroborates the statements made by the victim in her complaint,” the officer said.The survivor, in her complaint, stated that she was confined, threatened, and assaulted despite resisting, after turning down a marriage proposal from Mishra.