Found naked and bleeding: 4-year-old girl assaulted in West Bengal, grandfather arrested

Kolkata: The grandfather of a four-year-old girl, who was allegedly kidnapped and sexually assaulted in Tarakeswar, Hooghly, has been detained by the police in connection with the case. The incident reportedly took place late on Friday night near the Tarakeswar railway station premises, where the child's family was taking shelter.

The family alleged that the girl was taken after her mosquito net was slit open while she was asleep. She was later found on Saturday afternoon near a drain by the station, described as bleeding and unclothed, with bite marks.

The child was initially rushed to Tarakeswar Rural Hospital, where she was given first aid and discharged. However, the family accused the hospital staff of mishandling the case and later alleged that police officials at the station initially asked them to leave when they tried to file a complaint.

The alleged police inaction and initial hospital discharge led to protests by BJP leaders and workers inside the rural hospital premises. An FIR has since been registered under the Protection of Children from Sexual Offences (POCSO) Act. The ruling Trinamool Congress MLA for Tarakeswar, Ramendu Singha Roy, called the incident "extremely regrettable" and pointed to a security failure on the part of the Railway Police.

The sexual assault of a four-year-old girl in the Tarakeswar area of Hooghly district, West Bengal, has triggered a major political row following allegations of institutional negligence. The victim, who was sleeping alongside her family at the Tarakeswar railway station premises, was allegedly abducted late on Friday, 8 November 2025, after the assailant reportedly cut through her mosquito net.

The child was discovered in a bloodied state by relatives on Saturday afternoon near a drain adjacent to the station, reportedly naked and suffering from bite marks and genital bleeding. She was first taken to Tarakeswar Rural Hospital, where she received first aid and was discharged, a decision the family and political workers heavily criticised. The family further claimed that their initial pleas to the local police station to register a complaint were dismissed.

Following public outrage and protests by Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) workers, the police brought the child back to the hospital for further medical tests, and her grandfather was subsequently detained by officers for questioning.

The state opposition has strongly condemned the state government's handling of the matter. Suvendu Adhikari, the Leader of Opposition in the Bengal Assembly, posted on X (formerly Twitter), directly criticising the Chief Minister and calling the police response a deliberate attempt to "shield the State’s Fake Law & Order Image, by suppressing the truth."

In response, local Trinamool Congress (TMC) MLA Ramendu Singha Roy acknowledged the incident as "extremely regrettable" but suggested the family may have left the police station earlier "in confusion over medical treatment." Roy attributed the incident to a "security failure" by the Railway Police, who are responsible for security in the station area. An FIR has been officially registered under the stringent POCSO Act, and the investigation is ongoing.