A 23-year-old man accused of raping and murdering a 17-year-old girl in West Bengal’s North 24 Parganas district was killed in a police encounter on the intervening night of Monday and Tuesday after he allegedly snatched a service revolver from a police officer and opened fire during a crime scene reconstruction.
The Gaighata incident is the second such case in West Bengal in the past three months in which a rape and murder accused was killed in police firing during reconstruction of a crime scene.
Following news of Das’s death, his family members rushed to the hospital and expressed anger over the incident. A tense situation developed in the area, following which a large police contingent was deployed both at the hospital and in surrounding areas to maintain law and order. The Gaighata incident is the second such case in West Bengal in the past three months in which a rape and murder accused was killed in police firing during reconstruction of a crime scene. I never will. From what I’ve heard from the police, the perpetrator tried to escape, and the police opened fire. What else can I say… will I ever get my daughter back? What happened-under government orders-was the right thing. If someone tries to escape, they are bound to be shot. Will I ever find the person who killed my daughter?”
The accused, Prahlad Das, had been taken to the crime spot at Gaighata for reconstruction of the incident after his arrest in the case, according to police sources. Police had then said Mondal snatched the revolver of an escorting officer, opened fire while attempting to escape, and was killed when police fired in self-defence. The parents of the 17-year-old girl allegedly raped and murdered in West Bengal’s North 24 Parganas district said they were informed that the accused was killed while allegedly trying to escape after opening fire on police during a crime scene reconstruction exercise, with the victim’s mother calling it “a good thing” and her father saying the police had done “the right thing”. Her father said, “Will I ever get my daughter back?
