Bengal: Four Police Officers Suspended For Dragging Minor Girl's Body On Road In Kaliaganj

Three of the four ASIs are from the Kaliaganj Police Station, while the fourth is from the Raiganj Police Station.

New Delhi: Four cops, all in the position of Assistant Police Sub Inspectors (ASIs), were on Monday suspended for allegedly dragging the body of a minor girl on street at Kaliaganj in Uttar Dinajpur region of West Bengal last week, a senior official said, reported news agency PTI.

Three of the four ASIs are from the Kaliaganj Police Station, while the fourth is from the Raiganj Police Station.

The officer stated, "We have suspended four ASIs for dragging the body of the minor girl on April 21."

The girl's body was discovered floating in a Kaliaganj canal on Friday. Locals set fire to several shops and erected tyre-burning roadblocks, alleging that she had been raped and killed.

It was discovered that the police had dragged the body on the road while removing it. The incident was allegedly depicted in a video that went viral.

A preliminary post-mortem examination report uncovered there was no injury to the body, Uttar Dinajpur Director of Police Md Sana Akhtar said.

However, a case was filed under Section 302 (murder) of the Indian Penal Code and Protection of Children from Sexual Offences (POCSO) Act in light of a complaint recorded by the young girl's mother.

NCPCR Claims Lapses By Police In Probing Case

On Sunday, the deceased's family was visited by a group of National Commission for Protection of Child Rights officials led by chairperson Priyank Kanoongo. The NCPCR has looked for a report from the state DGP with regard to this issue by Monday.

Kanoongo stated on Monday that he will soon submit a report regarding this matter to Union Home Minister Amit Shah, alleging serious flaws in the state police's investigation into the death of a 17-year-old girl in the Uttar Dinajpur district of West Bengal.

Kanoogo claimed that the NCPCR team had to deal with "all sorts of non-cooperation" from the state administration when they visited the Kaliaganj area, where violent protests broke out after the girl's body was found in a canal on Friday.

The allegations were rejected by the state child rights panel, which stated that they were "politically motivated."

Speaking to PTI, Kanoongo said, "I am going to file a report to Home Minister Amit Shah after I return to Delhi. There are serious lapses on part of the Raiganj Police in investigating the girl's death. I fear that evidence may be tampered with because of the dilly-dallying by the police. I believe the Mamata Banerjee government is trying to save the culprits." He claimed that he had to wait for neary 22 hours before he could meet the investigating officer of the case.

He went on to say, "I could talk to only one doctor who was present during the autopsy while the others were sent to Kolkata."

"I have seen her mark sheets and spoken to her family. She was a very bright student. It is quite hard to believe that she died by suicide," he said.

Kanoongo's claims were rejected by the West Bengal Commission for Protection of Child Rights (WBCPCR), which claimed that he was attempting to "politicise the matter."