Trinamool Congress (TMC) MLA Madan Mitra has triggered outrage with his controversial remarks about the gangrape of a first-year law student in Kolkata. Mitra suggested the crime could have been avoided had the survivor not gone to the campus that evening, prompting accusations of victim-blaming.
The incident took place on June 25 at the South Calcutta Law College campus. The survivor alleged she was gangraped by Monojit Mishra, an alumnus and former member of the TMC youth wing, along with three other men. All four accused have been arrested.
Mitra’s controversial remarks
Speaking to news agency ANI, Madan Mitra sent out what he called a message for all girls. “…if someone calls you when the college is closed offering you a position in the unit, then don’t go, nothing good will come of it,” he said.
He further added: “If that girl had not gone there, this wouldn’t have happened. If she had informed someone before going or had taken a couple of friends with her, then this wouldn’t have happened.”
Mitra defended his party by saying TMC, being a large political organisation, often finds itself associated with various individuals, but their true intentions are not always known. “TMC is a big party. Someone or the other is associated with Trinamool everywhere… We get our photos taken with everyone, but what’s inside a person, only a psychologist can tell,” he said.
Political fallout and BJP’s response
The Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) quickly seized the moment, sharing images of the prime accused with senior TMC leaders, including MP Abhishek Banerjee and accusing the ruling party of shielding criminals. BJP’s Amit Malviya condemned Mitra’s comments, calling them “vile” and “victim-blaming”.
“This is victim-blaming, plain and vile… No woman is safe from these TMC predators… Mamata Banerjee isn’t just complicit, she is the problem,” Malviya said.
The BJP’s West Bengal unit echoed these sentiments, calling TMC’s stance “anti-women” and accusing the party of consistently enabling and defending those accused of sexual assault. “From questioning the character of the Park Street rape victim to now blaming the law student—this is not an exception, it’s a pattern,” the BJP stated in a post on X.
TMC distances itself from remarks
Facing mounting criticism, the Trinamool Congress distanced itself from the statements made by both Madan Mitra and party MP Kalyan Banerjee, who had earlier stirred controversy with his own remarks on the case.
In an official statement on X, the party said: “The party unequivocally disassociates itself from their statements and strongly condemns the same. These views do not reflect the position of the party in any manner whatsoever.”
The TMC reiterated its policy of “zero tolerance” for crimes against women and demanded the strictest punishment for all those involved.
Kalyan Banerjee’s remarks add fuel to the fire
Mitra’s comments were not the first from a TMC leader to provoke public anger. Earlier, MP Kalyan Banerjee reacted to the incident saying, “What can be done if a friend rapes his friend?” He went on to advise women to be cautious of people with “dirty mindsets”.
“Will the police be in every school? This happened between students. Who will protect her?” Banerjee questioned during a media interaction, suggesting that even preventive systems have limitations.
Details from the survivor’s FIR
In her complaint, the survivor said she went to the college in the evening for some work when the accused, Monojit Mishra, asked her to stay back. She alleged that he proposed marriage to her and as she was preparing to leave, he forcibly took her toward a washroom.
“It was within a fraction of a second… He took me near the washroom and tried to force me with the intention of rousing sex,” the FIR stated.
BJP slams TMC’s ‘disassociation’
Unimpressed by TMC’s attempt to disown the remarks, BJP accused the party of habitual insensitivity toward crimes against women. “Disassociation for what? TMC is a party of rape-sympathisers, rape-enablers and serial offenders,” the party wrote, listing past controversial statements made by TMC leaders, including Mamata Banerjee.
BJP also highlighted several sexual assault cases involving TMC members and warned that “Bengal can never be safe for women until TMC is thrown out of power.”