Key Points
- 24-year-old law student gang-raped inside South Calcutta Law College on June 25; four arrested including prime accused Manojit Mishra, a TMC student leader, two students, and a security guard.
- CCTV and medical evidence confirm the crime; victim was forcibly taken to the guard’s room, assaulted for hours, and threatened with video blackmail.
- Prime accused Mishra had a long record of harassment, intimidation, and sexual misconduct on campus, shielded by political connections.
- Victim’s complaint details brutal assault, physical violence, and institutional failure to protect students.
- Kolkata Police forms Special Investigation Team (SIT); all accused in police custody till July 1.
- Incident triggers protests, political outrage, and renewed questions about campus safety and political impunity in Bengal.
Kolkata: In a case that has sent shockwaves across West Bengal and the nation, a 24-year-old female law student was gang-raped inside South Calcutta Law College on June 25. The crime, which unfolded over several hours in the college’s guard room, has led to the arrest of four individuals, including a powerful student leader with deep political ties, two current students, and a security guard.
The Crime: Planned Assault, Threats, and Blackmail
According to the survivor’s complaint, she was lured to the college under the pretext of exam formalities and confined in the union room by Manojit Mishra, 31, the Organising Secretary of the Trinamool Congress Chhatra Parishad (TMCP) South Kolkata district and a former student leader. After she rejected his advances and a marriage proposal, Mishra, along with Zaib Ahmed (19) and Pramit Mukhopadhyay (20), forcibly took her to the security guard’s room, where she was brutally assaulted.
- CCTV footage spanning over seven hours corroborates the survivor’s account, showing her being forced into the guard’s room and the movements of all accused, including the security guard, Pinaki Banerjee (55), who failed to intervene and later vacated his post on Mishra’s orders.
- Medical reports confirm forced penetration, bite marks, and scratch injuries, supporting the survivor’s allegations.
- The accused allegedly recorded the assault on video and threatened to make it viral if the survivor reported the crime.
A Chilling Pattern: Mishra’s History of Abuse and Campus Impunity
Multiple current and former students describe Mishra, also known as “Mango,” as a campus terror with a long history of predatory behavior, including:
- Repeated sexual harassment, molestation, blackmail, and extortion of female students.
- Morphing and circulating obscene images, filming private moments, and body-shaming women in WhatsApp groups.
- Physical violence, intimidation, and manipulation of college WhatsApp groups and information flow.
- Repeated complaints to college authorities and the police were ignored, with Mishra shielded by his political connections and role as a casual staff member even after graduation. “This person and his aides were a terror, especially for girls. Authorities knew everything but protected him. We even filed a formal sexual harassment complaint to the teacher-in-charge, but nothing happened,”
— Third-year student, South Calcutta Law College.
Institutional and Political Fallout
The incident has sparked massive protests and political outrage. The police have formed a five-member Special Investigation Team (SIT) and seized the accused’s mobile phones, recovering a 1.5-minute video clip believed to be of the assault. All four accused are in police custody until July 1.
- The college’s governing body, led by a TMC MLA, is under scrutiny for appointing Mishra as a staffer despite his tainted record.
- Political leaders and the National Commission for Women have demanded swift justice and accountability.
A Wake-Up Call for Campus Safety
This case has reignited concerns about the safety of women on campuses in Kolkata and the unchecked power of politically connected individuals. Despite repeated warnings and complaints, institutional apathy allowed a climate of fear and abuse to persist, culminating in this horrific crime.
