‘My words distorted’: Mamata Banerjee amid backlash over her remarks on Bengal gang-rape case

BHUBANESWAR: The 23-year-old Odia medical student’s father contested West Bengal CM Mamata Banerjee’s alleged claim that his daughter left her hostel campus after midnight.During a press briefing, Mamata said she was informed the student and her male classmate were outside the campus at 12:30 am.Responding to it, the girl’s father said, “My daughter was sexually assaulted between 8 pm and 9 pm on Friday. Yet the CM falsely claimed the incident happened past midnight.” He also criticised Mamata’s alleged comment suggesting that women should be cautious about venturing out at night. “Despite being a woman herself, she made an insensitive remark suggesting women should not be out at night,” said the survivor’s father.Earlier in the day, a team of Odisha govt officials who visited West Bengal to take stock of the investigation’s progress expressed satisfaction with the police action. Their response comes a day after the survivor’s parents raised concerns over alleged lax investigation. “We held discussions with West Bengal police and reviewed the progress of their investigation, which we found satisfactory. Within 36 hours, they arrested three accused and detained another suspect for questioning,” Niranjan Behera, additional superintendent of police (ASP) from Balasore district, told reporters in Durgapur.Hemanta Singh, Balasore additional district magistrate who accompanied Behera, also vouched for Bengal police’s investigation. “West Bengal police updated us on their progress, and we found their actions satisfactory,” Singh said, noting that the survivor’s condition is stable. Shovana Mohanty, chairperson of Odisha state commission for women, said her team will soon visit West Bengal to provide support to the survivor. “We will conduct a counselling session with the medical student and ensure she is receiving proper treatment in Durgapur,” Mohanty said.