Baruipur encounter: Mother of killed accused says son got 'deserved punishment'

Kolkata, July 8
In a striking reaction to the encounter death of Pravas Mondal, the first accused arrested in the alleged rape and murder of a 12-year-old girl in West Bengal’s Baruipur, his mother on Wednesday said her son had received the punishment he deserved for his actions.

Speaking to mediapersons, Sandhya Mondal said she would neither claim nor even see her son's body. “I will not go to see my son's body, nor will I go to receive his body,” she said.

According to her, police personnel visited her residence on Wednesday morning and informed her about her son's death. When asked whether she wished to see the body, she declined.

Although she admitted that a mother's heart is bound to grieve, she said she had no complaints about the outcome. “As a mother, I am pained by his death. But he got the right punishment for what he did,” she said.

According to police, Pravas Mondal was taken to the crime scene on Tuesday night for reconstruction of the alleged offence of rape and murder of the minor girl. During the exercise, he allegedly snatched a service rifle from an escorting police officer and attempted to flee. Police said Mondal opened fire while trying to escape, prompting security personnel to retaliate. He sustained bullet injuries and was later declared dead at a local hospital.

The case relates to the alleged rape and murder of a 12-year-old girl, whose body was recovered from a pond in the Suryapur area of Baruipur on Sunday morning. The incident triggered widespread outrage and protests, with local residents demanding the immediate arrest of the accused and stringent punishment.

A six-member Special Investigation Team (SIT) was constituted to probe the case. Pravas Mondal was the first accused arrested. Subsequent interrogation reportedly led to the arrests of two others — Dibakar Sarkar and Ananda Sardar, the latter identified by police as the prime accused in the case.

Police on Wednesday also moved to arrest the fourth accused, Kabir Molla, who had been absconding since the alleged crime took place on Saturday evening.