West Bengal Chief Minister Mamata Banerjee on Monday criticized the Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) government at the Centre for failing to ensure the safety of the Unnao rape survivor. She also demanded a high-level probe into the accident involving the victim.
Banerjee urged Prime Minister Narendra Modi to look into the incident that has shocked the entire nation.
On Sunday, a car in which the 19-year-old woman who had accused BJP MLA Kuldeep Singh Sengar of rape was with her two aunts and their advocate. They were hit by a truck in Rae Bareli in Uttar Pradesh. While both the aunts have died, the rape survivor and the lawyer have received serious injuries. The mother of the rape survivor has termed the accident a conspiracy to wipe out her family. Since 2017, when the girl was raped, her father had died in jail, the eyewitness to the father’s death was found mysteriously dead. Along with that, the victim’s uncle has been slapped with five cases.
Speaking on Monday, Banerjee said that the incident was "extremely unfortunate" and said that investigation should be done to bring out the truth. "Every day they (BJP leaders) defame Bengal but does the (central) government have any idea about what is happening in UP? What happened in Unnao? Two relatives of the victim died and she is in a serious condition. There should be a high-level probe. The prime minister should look into it," she said.
While claiming that the CBI works at the Centre's directive, Banerjee questioned why the central agency's help was not being sought to probe the accident. "They are using the CBI against everybody then what is stopping them from asking the CBI to probe the incident," she asked.
. Calling out the BJP-ruled governments in Uttar Pradesh and the Centre for not doing enough to protect the survivor, Banerjee said that the country is under a fascist rule. “Everyday incidents of lynching are taking place. The prime minister should look after the country."
She also alleged that the incidents of mob lynching and murder were on the rise in Uttar Pradesh but the BJP government there was "too busy highlighting incidents of violence in West Bengal".