Kolkata Police arrested four men after a mob allegedly stormed New Alipore police station in the early hours of Tuesday, assaulted officers and tried to force the release of a man arrested in connection with the alleged molestation of a 24-year-old woman. The police used a lathicharge to disperse the crowd, and a large contingent was later deployed outside the station.
The incident followed an alleged molestation under Durgapur Bridge in New Alipore around 12.15 am. According to the report, the woman was returning home when three men allegedly molested her. Her brother, who heard her cries, intervened and alerted local residents. One of the alleged accused, identified as Jai Kumar Kamath, was caught at the spot, while the other two fled.
A police team reached the location around 12.55 am and took Kamath into custody. The woman was then asked to visit the police station and lodge a complaint. She went there with her parents, accompanied by around 50 people. Police officers asked the group to remain outside while the woman and her parents entered the premises, but the crowd allegedly forced its way into the compound.
The mob demanded that Kamath be handed over to them so that they could punish him, according to the report. The group allegedly assaulted police personnel and attempted to vandalise the station. As the situation escalated, police called for reinforcements and resorted to a lathicharge. Several officers sustained minor injuries, while the woman’s father was injured after falling during the commotion.
Four men identified as Sayantan Shome, Lucky Pandey, Swarup Das and Sourav Mallick were detained and subsequently arrested. Kolkata Police registered two cases in connection with the episode. The first was based on the woman’s complaint regarding the alleged molestation. The second followed a complaint by Rahul Adhikari, a sub-inspector at the station, alleging assault on police personnel and obstruction of government duty.
A senior Kolkata Police officer said both cases were being investigated. Police were also searching for the two men who allegedly fled after the molestation and for others suspected of attacking police personnel. The officer said the investigation would cover both the original complaint and the violence at the police station.
The episode highlights the immediate public-order challenge created when residents seek to bypass the criminal justice process inside an operating police facility. A police station is simultaneously a point of access for complainants, a custody location and a protected workplace for officers. The reported attack disrupted all three functions and required additional personnel in riot gear to secure the premises.
The incident also follows a reported encounter death in Bengal a day earlier, described as the state’s fourth since July last year. The report said three of the four people killed in those incidents had been accused of raping and murdering minor girls. It also recalled a 2014 episode in which a mob stormed Alipore police station during a protest over the eviction of slum-dwellers along Burdwan Road.
Kolkata Police said the search for the two alleged molestation suspects and the investigation into the attack on officers were continuing.
