BARUIPUR, West Bengal (W.B.P.) — Massive protests, arson and a retaliatory mob lynching erupted in Baruipur, South 24 Parganas, Sunday morning following the discovery of a 12-year-old minor girl's body in a local pond. The family alleged that the victim was abducted, gang-raped and then murdered.
According to family members, the child went missing on Saturday afternoon around 4:00 PM after she had gone to buy food items. Relatives and neighbours searched for her when she was not returning. Her body was found on Sunday morning in a village pond a few minutes from her home and the community erupted into outrage.
## Mob Violence and Widespread Blockades Paralise Baruipur
The discovery of the minor’s body turned local grief into widespread fury. Residents who felt the police had done wrong (and even delayed the initial response too) felt so much more than anything else and the streets were filled with people who marched through the city to demand justice. Protesters blocked the Baruipur-Joynagar Road by burning tyres and wooden logs and shut down traffic for hours. Protesters also sat on railway tracks over the Sealdah-Namkhana line and disrupted train services.
A part of the angry crowd had seen a local resident Indrajit Tanti and suspected him of being involved in the crime. They beat him up for not being guilty; his innocence was denied him and he was beaten to death by the mob. Security forces, including central forces, tried to intervene to secure Tanti but were forced back by heavy stone-pelting which injured several police officers. Police reinforcements did eventually get the suspect but he died.
Another suspect, Prabhash Mondal, was rescued from the crowd by the police and questioned, taken into custody by the police and formally arrested. The state administration has now appointed a six-member Special Investigation Team (SIT) led by the Additional Superintendent of Police to investigate the death of the child.
The heinous crime has quickly snowballed into a major political conflict between the ruling Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) and the opposition Trinamool Congress (TMC). Chief Minister Suvendu Adhikari contacted the victim’s father by phone to express his sorrow and assure him of a swift trial and that the culprits would be met with maximum punishment.
Following the CM’s assurance and an appeal delivered on megaphones by Inspector General of Police (Presidency Range) Kankarprasad Barui, the protesters relented, and the police took the body of the girl to the Baruipur Sub-Divisional Hospital for an autopsy.
However, opposition TMC hit back with a scathing attack on the state government. TMC Diamond Harbour MP Abhishek Banerjee accused the BJP administration of not protecting women despite grand pre-election promises. On social media platform X, Banerjee said political connections were affecting the case.
"@BJP4India doesn’t just fail women, it fosters a climate where those accused of heinous crimes appear to believe they enjoy political protection," Banerjee wrote. “When justice is selective and outrage political, it is not only the victim who suffers, it’s society that pays the price."
Tensions remain high in Baruipur as heavy deployments of the Rapid Action Force (RAF) and central paramilitary forces are monitoring the area to prevent flare-ups.
