New Delhi: A 27-year-old woman died in West Bengal’s Paschim Bardhaman district on Monday, triggering a war of words between the Trinamool and the Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP). Sukanta Majumdar, a Lok Sabha MP from the BJP, slammed Chief Minister Mamata Banerjee, alleging that she had turned Bengal into a “living hell for women”.
Responding to the accusation, TMC’s Kunal Ghosh alleged that some individuals of “portraying the death in a distorted manner”. While acknowledging the magnitude of the issue, the Trinamool spokesperson pointed out that if the allegations of sexual harassment were proven true, the culprits “should be chained…” But he emphasised, “this was a traffic problem. Nothing to do with law and order”.
The Trinamool leader was reacting to a scathing attack by Majumdar on X. The attack, which is notable given elections in Bengal next year, also mentioned the ghastly rape and murder of a 31-year-old medico at Kolkata’s RG Kar Hospital on August 9 last year. The incident sparked a massive dispute between the two parties, with the Trinamool being accused of protecting the guilty.
‘Shielding criminals instead of delivering justice’
In his post on Monday evening, the BJP leader slammed Mamata Banerjee over “horrific crimes against women reported every day” and alleged she was “remaining silent (and) shielding criminals instead of delivering justice”.
Majumdar wrote, “Under Mamata Banerjee’s rule, women in Bengal are unsafe everywhere – be it hospitals or highways! A woman was harassed and chased by miscreants on a National Highway, leading to her tragic death. West Bengal has become a living hell for women.”
Under @MamataOfficial‘s rule, women in Bengal are unsafe everywhere—be it hospitals or highways!
A woman was harassed & chased by miscreants on NH, leading to her tragic death.
West Bengal has become a living hell for women. Every day, horrific crimes against women are… pic.twitter.com/WKu8S17TwL
— Dr. Sukanta Majumdar (@DrSukantaBJP) February 24, 2025
“Every day, horrific crimes against women are reported… yet the government remains silent, shielding criminals instead of delivering justice! Mamata Banerjee came to power claiming to protect ‘Maa, Mati, Manush’ but, under her regime, women are raped, chased, murdered…”
Trinamool responds
After Majumdar’s post, Ghosh responded with a video statement on X, where he rubbished speculation that the 27-year-old woman had been sexually harassed before her death. He accused unnamed individuals (referring to the BJP) of having “planted” such a story.
“This is a serious matter. Earlier it was said the woman was fleeing after some remarks from some people… and that is how it led to her death. Such people should be thrashed. Police probe found this was an overtaking case. There is no eve-teasing angle in this,” he said.
“Some people are portraying her death in a distorted manner. If those accusations are true… then such people should be chained and paraded. But this was a traffic problem…”
পানাগড়ের ঘটনা প্রসঙ্গে। pic.twitter.com/0kigASAGWg
— Kunal Ghosh (@KunalGhoshAgain) February 24, 2025
“It had nothing to do with law-and-order,” Mr Ghosh insisted, repeating, “There is no eve-teasing angle… This theory was planted. Even victim’s side didn’t make such an accusation.”
What was the incident
On Monday late night, the local police said a young woman, an event management professional, had died in a road accident. An initial probe indicated that her car overturned near Panagarh (about 150km from Kolkata) while ‘racing’ with another on National Highway 19 to Bihar’s Gaya. The woman was identified as Suchandra Chattopadhyay hailing from Hooghly district.
It was claimed that the car carrying the deceased woman and her three colleagues flipped over while they were trying to escape from a second car with five men who were allegedly sexually harassing her.
These claims surfaced after police sources told news agency PTI that the deceased woman’s car was being refuelled at a petrol station when the second car drove up and “the men (in that car) started making lewd remarks towards the woman and driving recklessly”.
That theory, which emerged after one of the woman’s colleagues, Mintu Mondal, told reporters that men in an inebriated condition in the second car made lewd comments, forcing them to speed up and attempt to escape, was quickly dismissed.
Asansol-Durgapur Police Commissioner Sunil Kumar Choudhury told reporters, “This is a motivated campaign… We are going to check the motive behind this spreading of lies.”
He also stated that CCTV footage from just before the crash showed that the woman’s car was actually chasing the other vehicle. According to him, the woman’s car had refuelled and got back on NH19. Then, just before Panagarh, the second car entered the highway ahead of her vehicle. What happened after this is under investigation.
