Asha Devi, mother of ‘Nirbhaya,’ has called for the resignation of West Bengal Chief Minister Mamata Banerjee, accusing her of failing to manage the situation effectively. Speaking to PTI about the August 9 rape-murder of a trainee doctor at Kolkata’s RG Kar Medical College and Hospital, Devi criticized Banerjee for not taking decisive action.
“As a woman, she (Banerjee) should have taken action against the culprits while discharging her responsibility as the head of the state. She should resign for failing to handle the situation,” Asha Devi stated.
Devi also accused the Chief Minister of attempting to mislead the public. “Instead of using her authority to act against the culprits, Mamata Banerjee is protesting to divert people’s attention from the issue,” she said, referring to Banerjee’s protest march demanding justice for the victim and the hanging of the perpetrators.
Sanjoy Roy, a civic volunteer with Kolkata Police, has been arrested in connection with the crime, which has drawn comparisons to the December 16, 2012, gang rape of Nirbhaya. Following the national outrage, Nirbhaya was airlifted to Singapore, where she died on December 29.
Among the six convicts, one was found dead in his cell at Delhi’s Tihar prison in September 2013, and another, who was a minor at the time of the crime, was released in December 2015 after serving the maximum three years. The remaining four convicts were executed in March 2020 after exhausting all legal appeals.
Asha Devi also emphasized that such incidents will persist unless both central and state governments become more serious about ensuring swift justice for rapists.