Baruipur rape case: West Bengal police intensify investigation; examine the shack as a possible crime scene

Security outside the Baruipur police station has been beefed up after police on Monday, July 6, 2026, brought people accused of the alleged gangrape and murder of an 11-year-old girl in South 24 Parganas. File | Photo credit: PTI

West Bengal Chief Minister Suvendu Adhikari on Tuesday (July 7, 2026) visited Baruipur in the state’s South 24 Parganas district and met the family members of a 12-year-old girl who was sexually assaulted and killed, while giving a 72-hour ultimatum to the police administration to investigate whether there was any laxity on the part of the police.

“I have done the primary analysis. I have asked the DGP to submit a report within 72 hours. We will take strict action accordingly. If there is any negligence after the complaint, even if it is 1%, action will be taken,” Mr Adhikari told the media in Baruipur.

While expressing satisfaction that the victim’s family members have reposed faith in his government, the chief minister said action would be taken against around 200 identified persons who allegedly vandalized public property, damaged police vehicles and railway tracks during the protest that followed the recovery of the girl’s body.

The family members of the victim demanded the establishment of a police base near their residence, to which the Chief Minister agreed.

According to the police, three persons were arrested and charged under Sections 63 (rape), 70 (2) (gangrape), 103 (1) (murder) and 238 (willful tampering with evidence) of the IPC and necessary sections of the POCSO. Those arrested are identified as Anand Sardar, Prabhas Mandal and Dibakar Sardar.

The chief minister said the missing complaint was lodged on Saturday (July 4, 2026 at 11.50 pm), hours after she went missing. The body was found on Sunday afternoon. Violence broke out after the body was pulled from the pond, and the mob attacked the police and blocked roads and railway lines.

After the girl’s body was found, a young man named Indranath Tanti was beaten to death by a mob. The Chief Minister on Tuesday (July 7, 2026) said that the person lynched by the mob was innocent. “The police told me that the man who was lynched was innocent,” Mr. Adhikari said. The Chief Minister said that there have been attempts to give a common angle to the rape and murder. Later in the day, the Chief Minister met police officers who were injured in the violence.

Local MP Saayoni Ghosh, who recently defected from the Trinamool Congress to the Indian National Party, also visited Baruipur and tried to meet the victim’s family members.

She initially found the door closed and was later able to meet family members. Three days after the incident, locals raised slogans calling her a “traitor” and asked why she had visited the place.

MP Kakoli Ghosh Dastidar also visited Baruipur. Leaders from the Ritabrata faction of the Trinamool Congress also visited Baruipur and met the family members of the victim. West Bengal Minister Agnimitra Pal and Sonarpur Dakshin BJP MLA Roopa Ganguly were also among the leaders who visited Baruipur and met the family members of the victim.

Published – 07 Jul 2026 16:24 IST