Hanshkhali (Nadia), April 15: BJP’s fact-finding team member Rekha Verma, a Party MP embarrassed the leadership on Friday as she disclosed the identity of the Hanskhali rape and murder victim while briefing the newsmen after meeting her parents.
Not just Verma rather the members of the Bengal BJP’s social media team that accompanied the four leaders who visited Hanshkhali jostled with the media persons to grab pictures and record videos of the parents of the victim when they were narrating the incident.
The social media team members, who were women didn’t bother to restrain themselves despite party MLS Srirupa Mitra Chaudhary cautioning them apart from some photojournalists who tried to remind them about the Supreme Court directives regarding the prohibition of disclosure of the identity of the rape victim.
The girl was allegedly been gang-raped by Braja Gayali (alias Sohail), son of a local Trinamul Congress leader on April 4. She later died in the early hours of April 5 due to excessive bleeding. Her body was cremated forcibly by alleged accomplices of the prime accused Brajo and his father.
Verma in her briefing clearly mentioned the name of the girl and how she was tortured by prime accused Sohail alias Brajo Gayali.
As per section 228, A of IPC disclosure of the identity of the rape victim is a punishable offence and the Supreme Court has completely prohibited disclosure of the victim’s identity. On December 11, 2018, the apex court put an absolute bar on disclosure of the name of the victim and any material which may even remotely reveal the identity of victims of sexual crime. The Supreme Court at the same time put a bar on the media to publish or air the names or any material which may even remotely reveal the identity of victims of sexual crimes.
“No person can print or publish in print, electronic, social media, etc. the name of the victim or even in a remote manner disclose any facts which can lead to the victim being identified and which should make her identity known to the public at large. The bar extends to anything which can even remotely be used to identify the victim,” a Bench of Justices Madan B. Lokur and Deepak Gupta of the Supreme Court laid down the rule in their judgment on the day.
When asked by this Correspondent, BJP MP who flayed the Bengal Chief Minister for deteriorating law and order situation demanding President’s rule fumbled. “I just put in connection with a reference to wrong information spread about the girl”, she said.
However, when she was reminded about the Supreme Court’s directive the BJP MP from Uttar Pradesh acknowledge the mistake. “I must be careful in the future”, a visibly embarrassed Rekha Verma said.
Verma’s “disclosure” came a day after Bengal BJP leader Bharati Ghosh accused Bengal Chief Minister Mamata Banerjee of referring to the victim girl while speaking about the Hanshkhali incident. Ghosh categorically said that once a case under the Pocso Act is registered, no one could speak or make a reference to the victim in any form whatsoever. “This is an offence…” she said in Hanshkhali on Thursday.
When asked about her reaction Ghosh told The NfN, “I am not aware what she has said. But if she really mentioned it wring…no e of us is above the law”.
Not just Rekha Verma or the accompanying social media team of the state leadership, but rather the party’s South Nadia organizing committee also disclosed the identity of the victim by making several posts on social media.
Party’s Nadia south committee president and Ranaghat west MLS Parthasarathi Chatterjee however claimed that the posts were made through a fake profile. “It is unfortunate…But our party workers were not associated with the post. The posts were made to malign our party’s, he said.
CPM Nadia secretary Sumit De, said, “Such posts and comments mentioning the name of the victim girl proves how BJP could come low for its vested political interest”.