Agencies/Kolkata
Police in west Bengal yesterday made the first arrests in the rape case of an elderly nun that sparked outrage in India and abroad, officials said.
The nun in her seventies was attacked at the Jesus and Mary convent school in the Ranaghat town of the eastern state nearly two weeks ago.
Police arrested the first suspect, Mohamed Salim Sheikh, from Mumbai, following a nationwide hunt, Dilip Kumar Adak, an official with the West Bengal police’s Criminal Investigation Department, told reporters.
A gang of six robbers attacked the convent school and a church in Ranaghat around 100km from state capital Kolkata. One of the men assaulted the nun before the gang fled with cash and valuables.
The second suspect, Gopal Sarkar, was arrested in West Bengal hours after Sheikh’s arrest, for giving shelter to the gang.
Although Adak refused to give further details on whether Sheikh was the mastermind of the attack, the online edition of The Hindu daily reported that the suspect had admitted to his presence at the convent.
Police in Kolkata identified four of the six robbers through CCTV footage and had detained eight people for questioning.
But no arrests were made until Wednesday and authorities in Kolkata had faced criticism over the pace of progress in the investigation.
Last week, the West Bengal government said it was handing over the case to the Cedntral Bureau of Investigation after coming under fire over the lack of arrests.
Police have launched a gang-rape inquiry, although officers say only one person sexually assaulted the nun.
Sheikh appeared in court in Kolkata yesterday and was remanded in custody for two weeks.
Both men are suspected to be Bangladeshi nationals.
Sarkar came to India illegally from Bangladesh in 2002 and has been staying in Habra in North 24-Parganas district in west Bengal since then.
“He has been staying illegally there since 2002. Gopal Sarkar gave shelter to the bandits prior to the incident,” said Adak.
Asked whether Sarkar was also present at the scene of the crime, the officer said: “So far we have got information that he only gave shelter to the miscreants.”
The assault was the latest in a string of high-profile rapes in India and added to the fears of the country’s Christian minority following a spate of attacks on churches.
Detectives have posted a reward of Rs100,000 for any leads on the suspects.
Prime Minister Narendra Modi has promised a crackdown on religious violence and has said he was deeply concerned about the attack on the nun.
In another development, a Bengaluru-based lawyer along with Delhi law students yesterday submitted a petition to the Bar Council of India seeking action against the defence lawyers of the December 16 gang-rape convicts for their controversial remarks in a BBC documentary. After delivering the petition with 200,000 signatures, Raghul Sudheesh, a law journalist and lawyer from Bengaluru expressed the hope that the BCI would launch immediate action against defence lawyers M L Sharma and A P Singh for their misogynistic comments in the BBC documentary India’s Daughter.
“If the BCI fails to act, I would be moving before the Supreme Court of India. I will not let down the hopes of 2 lakh people who have signed my petition and will fight to ensure that these two lawyers are taken to task,” said Sudheesh.
He has requested the Bar Council for the immediate suspension of the two lawyers and sought an unconditional apology from them.
Also yesterday, a New Delhi court sent a man arrested in connection with rape videos that were posted on phone messaging service WhatsApp to seven days’ police custody.
Chief Metropolitan Magistrate Sanjay Khanagwal allowed the CBI to question Kalia Sahoo alias Subrat Sahoo till April 2.
He was presented before the court at the end of his one-day police custody.
Sahoo was arrested from Bhubaneswar on March 23.
The court allowed the CBI plea that Sahoo was required for interrogation and he will be taken to Bhubaneswar and other locations.
Police take suspect Mohamed Salim Sheikh to a court in Kolkata yesterday.
