Cal HC orders 2nd autopsy; Mamata tells police to ensure justice in 3 mths

KOLKATA, Oct 6: The Calcutta High Court on Sunday ordered that a second post-mortem be conducted on the schoolgirl who was allegedly gang-raped and murdered in West Bengal’s South 24 Parganas district.
The 10-year-old girl was returning to her Joynagar home after attending her tuition classes on Saturday when the incident took place.
Justice Tirthankar Ghosh of the Calcutta High Court, hearing a petition filed by the girl’s parents, directed that the second post-mortem be conducted at AIIMS Hospital in Kalyani on Monday in the presence of the Additional Chief Judicial Magistrate (ACJM) of Baruipur court.
Justice Ghosh also ordered that police should register a case under the POCSO Act.
If AIIMS Kalyani lacks the necessary infrastructure to conduct the post-mortem, it should be carried out at Jawaharlal Nehru Memorial Hospital, also located in Kalyani, the court said. However, the post-mortem must be done by doctors from Kalyani AIIMS, not those from the state-run hospital, it added.
Ensure capital punishment within 3 months: Mamata
Meanwhile, West Bengal Chief Minister Mamata Banerjee on Sunday directed the police to register the alleged rape-murder case of a 10-year-old girl in South 24 Parganas district under the POCSO Act, and ensure that the culprits get capital punishment within three months.
Banerjee, while speaking at the Kolkata Police Body Guard Lines after virtually inaugurating several Durga Pujas, asserted that crime has no colour, caste or religion.
“I want the police to register the Kultuli case under the POCSO Act and ensure that the culprits get capital punishment within three months… Crime is crime; there is no religion or caste. Strong action should be taken against the criminals,” the chief minister said.
Taking exception to “media trials” in rape cases, Banerjee said these must stop as it could hamper investigations.
The body of a 10-year-old girl, allegedly raped and murdered, was found at Kultuli in South 24 Parganas on Saturday, after which locals torched a police outpost and vadalised vehicles parked there, a senior officer said. The body of the schoolgirl is currently kept at Kantapukur morgue, where the first post-mortem was performed.
One person has been arrested in connection with the murder. (PTI)