Bengal Woman’s Death Sparks Political Clash Between BJP and Trinamool
The tragic death of a 27-year-old woman in West Bengal’s Paschim Bardhaman district has ignited a fierce political battle between the Trinamool Congress (TMC) and the Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP). BJP leader and Lok Sabha MP Sukanta Majumdar launched a scathing attack on Chief Minister Mamata Banerjee, alleging that Bengal had become a “living hell for women.”
In response, TMC spokesperson Kunal Ghosh accused political opponents of distorting facts surrounding the incident. While he acknowledged the gravity of the case and emphasized that the guilty must be punished if sexual harassment claims were verified, he maintained that the incident stemmed from a traffic-related issue rather than a law-and-order failure.
Majumdar, in a post on X, criticized the state government, citing the horrific rape and murder of a doctor at Kolkata’s RG Kar Hospital last year as an example of the worsening situation. He alleged that crimes against women were on the rise and accused the TMC of shielding criminals instead of ensuring justice.
Conflicting Narratives on the Incident
The controversy began after reports suggested that the deceased, Suchandra Chattopadhyay, an event management professional from Hooghly, died in a road accident while allegedly trying to escape harassment. Her car overturned on National Highway 19 near Panagarh as she and her colleagues were reportedly attempting to flee from a group of men who were following them in another vehicle.
Police, however, dismissed these claims, stating that the accident resulted from a high-speed chase between the two vehicles. Asansol-Durgapur Police Commissioner Sunil Kumar Choudhury called the harassment claims a “motivated campaign” and stated that CCTV footage showed Chattopadhyay’s car was actually chasing the other vehicle before the crash.
Family Demands Justice
Chattopadhyay’s family staged a protest at the Kanksa Police Station, alleging that while her colleagues were detained for questioning, the men in the second vehicle remained free. Her grieving mother, Tanushree Chatterjee, demanded immediate arrests, accusing the authorities of inaction.
The police assured a thorough investigation, but as of now, no arrests have been made. The case continues to fuel a political firestorm in Bengal, with both parties using the incident to target each other ahead of the upcoming elections.
