4-Year-Old Girl Brutally Assaulted in West Bengal’s Hooghly; Opposition Slams Mamata Govt Over Law and Order

A four-year-old girl from West Bengal’s Hooghly district was found critically injured after being allegedly sexually assaulted near Tarakeshwar, triggering widespread outrage and a political storm over deteriorating law and order in the state.

According to reports, the minor was sleeping beside her grandmother under a mosquito net near a railway shed when she was abducted in the early hours of Friday. The child, belonging to the Banjara community, was later discovered lying in a pool of blood near the Tarakeshwar railway high drain. She was rushed to Tarakeshwar Gramin Hospital, where doctors described her condition as critical.

‘They cut the net and took her away’

The victim’s grandmother, visibly shaken, said the incident occurred around 4 a.m. “She was sleeping with me. Someone took her away. They cut the mosquito net and carried her off while I was asleep,” she told reporters, holding up the torn net as evidence.

The family, displaced after their homes were demolished, had been living on the streets near the railway area. “Where do we go? We don’t have any homes,” the grandmother said tearfully.

Police register case under POCSO

Police said a case has been registered under relevant sections of the Indian Penal Code and the Protection of Children from Sexual Offences (POCSO) Act. A probe is underway to identify and arrest the perpetrator. Senior officials have reportedly visited the scene, and multiple teams have been deployed to trace the suspect.

Opposition slams Mamata government

The horrific assault has sparked outrage among Opposition leaders. BJP’s Leader of Opposition in the West Bengal Assembly, Suvendu Adhikari, accused the Mamata Banerjee government of “trying to suppress” the incident.

“4-year-old girl child has been raped in Tarkeshwar. Family rushes to the police station, but FIR not registered! Tarkeshwar Police busy burying the crime,” Adhikari wrote on X (formerly Twitter). “This is the true face of Mamata Banerjee’s free-for-all regime. A child’s life is shattered, yet the Police are shielding the State’s fake law & order image by suppressing the truth.”

Growing concern over safety of women and children

The Tarakeshwar incident has reignited debate over women’s and children’s safety in West Bengal, where similar cases have drawn criticism in recent months. Human rights groups and child welfare advocates have urged the state government to ensure swift justice and provide medical and psychological support to the victim’s family.

Police said investigations are ongoing and assured that the accused “will be brought to justice soon.”