Police have arrested two more people in the lynching of 26-year-old Indrajit Tanti. The mob killed him on July 5 in Baruipur. The killing followed the alleged rape and murder of a 12-year-old girl.
Police caught the latest two suspects after searching through the night. They will appear in a South 24 Parganas district court later today. The public prosecutor will ask the court for police custody.
This brings the total number of arrests in the lynching case to seven. The people held are Farooq Sardar, Rajesh Sardar, Shariful Mallick, Sabiuddin Vaidya, Farid Sheikh, Abu Siddique Sardar and Shamim Ali Khan.
Charges filed
Police have booked all seven under the Bharatiya Nyaya Sanhita, 2023. The charges include unlawful assembly, rioting, blocking a public servant from doing their duty, hurting a public servant on purpose, and murder by lynching.
Officials say more arrests are likely in the coming days.
Chief Minister visits victim’s family
On Saturday afternoon, Chief Minister Suvendu Adhikari visited Baruipur. He gave a cheque of Rs 25 lakh to the family of Indrajit Tanti, the young man killed by the mob. Police investigations had already cleared Tanti of any role in the girl’s rape and murder.
The Chief Minister also announced a job for Tanti’s elder brother. He will work as a civic volunteer with the state police.
Adhikari made another claim during his visit. He said people who lost in the recent West Bengal assembly elections were behind the plot to lynch Tanti.
Three separate cases registered
Police have opened three different cases linked to the Baruipur incident. Each one is being investigated separately.
The first case covers the rape and murder of the 12-year-old girl.
The second case covers the mob lynching of Indrajit Tanti.
And, the third case covers violence that broke out in the area on Sunday afternoon. During this violence, people damaged railway tracks and police vehicles. They also attacked and injured police personnel. So far, 42 people have been arrested for this violence.
Update on the girl’s murder case
In the first case, about the girl’s rape and murder, police have arrested four people.
One of those four, Pravas Mondal, is now dead. He died last week during a police encounter. Reports say he tried to escape from police custody by grabbing a firearm from the officer guarding him.