Bhubaneswar: A disturbing gang-rape incident targeting a 23-year-old Odia medical student in Durgapur, West Bengal, has escalated into a political row between the two states. The Odisha State Commission for Women (OSCW) has announced it will dispatch a team to Durgapur to investigate the student’s well-being and security.
The victim’s father, originally from Jaleswar in Odisha’s Balasore district, expressed his deep concerns about his daughter’s safety in West Bengal, stating, “I have lost trust. I fear for her life here.” He has formally requested authorities to allow his daughter to return to Odisha to continue her education.
Describing the assault as “barbaric, condemnable, and painful,” OSCW chairperson Sovana Mohanty revealed that she has formally written to the West Bengal Women’s Commission and senior police officials, urging swift and stringent action against the perpetrators. She detailed that the student and her male friend were accosted by three individuals while out for street food (‘puchka’). The attackers allegedly demanded money before assaulting the student after the male friend fled.
Mohanty further criticized the West Bengal government for a “complete collapse of law and order” and controversially alluded to the involvement of “persons belonging to the minority community.” This statement quickly drew sharp rebukes from Trinamool Congress leaders, who accused the Odisha government of politicizing 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 has assured the survivor’s father of comprehensive assistance and legal support, emphasizing that “The culprits must face the severest punishment.” He has directed state authorities to collaborate with West Bengal officials. A team comprising the additional SP and additional district magistrate of Balasore was dispatched to Durgapur to meet with the survivor’s parents and the local police commissioner, offering full cooperation.
According to the father’s account, the attackers threatened the student with death if she raised an alarm and stole her mobile phone along with ₹200. Security footage from the medical college corroborated the student and her friend leaving the campus around 7:54 pm. The male friend returned later, and then left again, before returning with the survivor around 9:30 pm.
The police officer, speaking anonymously, reported that the attackers had used the victim’s phone to call her friend after the assault but kept the device, demanding ₹3,000 for its return. The phone was reportedly recovered from the arrested accused.
Union Education Minister Dharmendra Pradhan condemned the incident as “despicable and painful,” stating that “such crimes against women have no place in society.” Baijayant Panda, BJP Vice President and Kendrapada MP, criticized the Mamata Banerjee-led government, alleging that West Bengal has become a “safe haven for criminals.” He tweeted, “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.”
Meanwhile, in Balasore, BJP MP Pratap Sarangi, visiting the site, asserted that “West Bengal has now become a safe haven for terrorists and anti-social elements.” He called for the immediate apprehension of the main accused, who is reportedly still at large, suggesting that the state government might be complicit in protecting the perpetrators.