Bengal: Child rights body orders arrest of BJP’s Nilanjan Roy for ‘sexually assaulting’ minor girl

The West Bengal Commission for Protection of Child Rights has directed the state chief electoral officer to take necessary action against Nilanjan Roy, BJP candidate from Diamond Harbour constituency in the Lok Sabha, as the per rules within 24 hours and directed the police to arrest him immediately under the POCSO Act, 2012 for allegedly sexually assaulting a minor girl inside a house at Falta.

“We have taken cognizance following a complaint that BJP candidate from Diamond Harbour constituency, Nilanjan Roy, has been allegedly accused of sexually assaulting a minor girl in South 24 Parganas. Alleged is accused yet to be arrested,” the child rights body said in the notice.

“The WBCPCR has directed Chief Electoral Officer, West Bengal to take necessary action as per rules within 24 hours and has directed the police to arrest the alleged accused immediately under the POCSO Act, 2012,” it added.

The WBCPCR sources said the body received a complaint from the alleged victim against the inactiveness of the state police in arresting the accused. The alleged incident took place on April 26 when the girl had reportedly gone to meet the BJP candidate at a house in Falta in South 24 Parganas district to complain to him about the misbehaviour of some of his party workers, a member of her family said.

"The next day a complaint was lodged at the Falta police station. Medical examination of the girl has been completed and her statement recorded but the police are yet to arrest the BJP candidate who has been booked under POCSO Act," West Bengal Commission for Protection of Child Rights (WBCPCR) chairperson Ananya Chatterjee Chakraborti told PTI.

She said the WBCPCR has taken cognizance of the complaint as the modesty of a minor girl of 17 years was allegedly outraged.Chakraborti along with other members of the WBCPCR visited the victim at her home Friday.The Election Commission is yet to take a decision in connection with the case.

"We have received a communication from the WBCPCR and are looking into it. We have sought the police report in the case and will take necessary step as per law," an official at the CEO office said.Roy, when contacted rubbished the allegations and described it as a "conspiracy" hatched by the Trinamool Congress candidate from the seat- Abhishek Banerjee.

"It's (the complaint) absolutely a fabricatred one. There is political conspiracy behind this by Abhishek Banerjee, the nephew of Mamata Banerjee. There is no truth in it," he asserted.