Bengal rape case sparks row between 2 states, father wants survivor shifted to Odisha

BHubaneswar: The Odisha tell direction for Women (OSCW) on sun said that it testament direct a team to Durgapur in West Bengal to inquire into the health and safety of the 23-year-old Odia medical student who was allegedly gangraped near her private medical college on Friday evening even as the incident sparked a bitter political confrontation between both the states.Meanwhile, the survivor’s father, who hails from Jaleswar in Odisha’s Balasore district, said he plans to bring his daughter back to Odisha, citing security concerns. “I have lost trust. I fear for her life here,” he said. “The chief minister, DG, SP, and collector from Odisha are helping us a lot. I’ve requested that we be allowed to take her back home so she can continue her studies in Odisha.”Calling the incident “barbaric, condemnable, and painful,” OSCW chairperson Sovana Mohanty said she had written to the West Bengal Women’s Commission, the state police, and top police officers seeking swift and strict action against the accused. “The girl and her male friend had gone out to have “puchka” in the evening when three miscreants accosted them, demanded money, and later took turns to rape her after the boy fled,” Mohanty told reporters in Bhubaneswar.Mohanty accused the West Bengal government of allowing a “complete collapse of law and order” and alleged that “persons belonging to the minority community” were involved in the attack — a remark that immediately drew sharp criticism from Trinamool Congress leaders, who accused the Odisha BJP government of communalising the crime.“The Odisha government has written to the West Bengal government demanding immediate arrest of the accused and the harshest punishment. We are also ensuring full medical care and support for the survivor,” Mohanty added.Odisha chief minister Mohan Charan Majhi, who spoke to the survivor’s father, assured him of all possible assistance and legal support. “The culprits must face the severest punishment,” Majhi said in a statement, directing his administration to coordinate with West Bengal authorities. Odisha on Sunday sent the additional SP and additional district magistrate of Balasore to Durgapur where they met the parents of the survivor as well as police commissioner of Durgapur-Asansol assuring full cooperation from Odisha.The 23-year-old student was allegedly gang-raped after she stepped out with her friend. The miscreants allegedly threatened to kill her if she raised an alarm. They also snatched her mobile phone and ₹200 she was carrying, her father alleged.“Security camera footage at the medical college showed the survivor and her friend leaving the campus around 7.54 pm. The male student returned around 8.42 pm and was loitering around. He left again at 8.48 pm and returned with the survivor around 9.30 pm,” a West Bengal police officer said requesting anonymity.“The survivor said that the culprits called up her friend from her phone after the rape but kept the device saying it would be returned only if she paid ₹3,000. It was seized from the accused after their arrest,” the officer added.Union education minister Dharmendra Pradhan termed the incident “despicable and painful,” adding that “such crimes against women have no place in society.” Baijayant Panda, BJP vice-president and Kendrapada MP, accused the Mamata Banerjee government of letting Bengal become “a safe haven for criminals.” In a post on X, he wrote: “The shocking gangrape of an Odia student in Durgapur exposes the alarming collapse of law & order in the state. Neither local residents nor students from other states are safe anymore.”In Balasore, BJP MP Pratap Sarangi visited the site of the incident and alleged that “West Bengal has now become a safe haven for terrorists and anti-social elements.” He demanded the immediate arrest of the “main accused who is still at large,” saying the state government appeared to be “protecting” the perpetrators.