Bengal governor molestation row: Police receives CCTV footage from Raj Bhavan
On Wednesday, the Raj Bhavan took an unprecedented step stating that Ananda Bose has decided to air the relevant CCTV footage to 100 citizens, West Bengal chief minister Mamata Banerjee or the police excluded, inside Raj Bhavan premises
Kolkata: The Kolkata Police, probing into the molestation charges against West Bengal Governor CV Ananda Bose, said they received the first cache of the CCTV footage from Raj Bhavan on Thursday night.
“We received the footage yesterday from the personnel in charge of the CCTV at Raj Bhavan. At this stage, we can only say that these are relevant CCTV footage”, said a senior officer of Kolkata Police.
This came hours after the Raj Bhavan screened some clippings of footage.
The woman, a contractual employee at the Raj Bhavan, on May 2 accused Bose of molesting her on two separate occasions. In her written complaint to the Hare Street police station, the woman alleged the governor sexually harassed her, first on March 24 and later on May 2, who summoned her to his chamber on the pretext of offering her a permanent job.
The next day, Kolkata Police set up an enquiry team to probe the allegations. On May 5, Bose asked the staff at Raj Bhavan to ignore the police inquiry citing Article 361 of the Constitution which says that no criminal proceedings can be initiated against the President and the governor of a state as long as they are in office.
On Wednesday, however, the Raj Bhavan took an unprecedented step stating that Bose has decided to air the relevant CCTV footage to 100 citizens, West Bengal chief minister Mamata Banerjee or the police excluded, inside Raj Bhavan premises.
“The allegation is that the incident took place between 4:00pm and 4:30pm inside the conference room of Raj Bhavan,” said a police officer, aware of the development.
The 69-minute long footage captured by two CCTV cameras installed at the North Gate showed the woman approaching policemen at the police outpost near the North Gate of Raj Bhavan around 5:33pm on May 2. For the most part of the footage, policemen in their white uniforms could be seen standing at the North Gate. Their numbers increased as time passed by.
At around 5:33pm, the woman, wearing a blue and white kurta, could be seen approaching the police personnel. She then went to the police outpost near the North Gate of Raj Bhavan.
According to the people aware of the development, the CCTV footage, which the police have got, shows the woman walking down the stairs crying. She was taken to the EPABX room and then went to a Raj Bhavan official’s room.
“Me and my family members are in pain and mentally shattered. I have lost my job and the dignity of myself and my family. I have lost everything”, the complainant told HT.
The complaint meanwhile has been shifted to an undisclosed location, police said.
“I am not from Kolkata and hence I don’t know the city well….I am now staying with my parents at a location which has been arranged by the police under their protection. I haven’t been allowed to go out for security reasons. Our phones have been ringing since the CCTV footages were screened. I am not in a mental position to take any calls”, the woman said.
Also Read: WB guv molestation row: Raj Bhavan releases CCTV footage; TMC says irrelevant
Asked whether she plans to write to President Droupadi Murmu over the issue, she said, “I will take advice from my parents and the police and then decide”.
There was no response from the Raj Bhavan till reports last came in.
Taking a dig at Bose, Trinamool Congress national general secretary Abhishek Banerjee said that the governor should release the CCTV footage when the woman came out of his office and demanded that the entire footage should be released in public. “By showing this clipping and identifying the woman he has insulted the woman. He is an insult to the post. Can he do anything just because he is protected by the law? The state government should move the Supreme Court,” Banerjee told reporters in Kolkata.
Responding to Banerjee’s comments, Bengal Bharatiya Janata Party leader Ragul Sinha said, “Does Abhishek Banerjee think the governor will work according to his orders? The governor is not bound to show any CCTV footage. But still, he invited 100 people and screened the clippings. So, Banerjee’s statements have no value. He himself is running from court to court to avoid going to jail,” said Rahul Sinha, BJP leader.