Hooghly (West Bengal): A four-year-old girl from the Banjara community is currently fighting for her life after she was reportedly kidnapped and sexually assaulted in Tarakeshwar, Hooghly district, igniting outrage among residents and political tensions.

The survivor, who was camping with her family near the Railway Shed in Tarakeshwar, was discovered in a bloody and critical state, according to police reports on Saturday.

The Tarakeshwar police have apprehended the girl's grandfather, Raju Das (45), concerning the incident.

The horrifying events occurred in the early hours of Friday. As per the survivor's family, they were resting in an open area near Tarakeshwar station, which served as their improvised home, when "miscreants cut through their mosquito net" and snatched the sleeping child away. The family promptly initiated a frantic search.

Later that afternoon, the little girl was found near a high drain at the Tarakeshwar railway. She was discovered in a "bloody and critical condition" and was immediately transported to the Tarakeshwar Rural Hospital for urgent medical treatment.

Family sources indicated that Bholanath Saha, the survivor's affiliation, is with the Banjara community, originating from Jharkhand.

In a formal statement, Kamanashish Sen, IPS, the Superintendent of Police for Hooghly Rural Police, verified the occurrence along with the survivor's community background.

Both the Superintendent of Police and the Officer-in-Charge (OC) of Tarakeswar Police Station confirmed that a First Information Report (FIR) has been lodged regarding the case.

The case is being prosecuted under Section 6 of the Protection of Children from Sexual Offences (POCSO) Act, which is a serious allegation. The police are currently concentrating on identifying the perpetrator.

Political turmoil has erupted amid allegations of police indifference. The incident has sparked significant political backlash, especially after claims of initial inaction by law enforcement.

A group from the Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) arrived at the scene following the dissemination of the news regarding the assault.

Dr Sukanta Majumdar, the Union Minister of State for Education and DoNER, publicly condemned both the incident and the alleged lack of response from officials via a social media message.

“The reign of dreadful barbarity under Mamata Banerjee has reached a point where a four-year-old girl is not secure!”, he posted. 

The minister further criticised that the police at the local Tarakeshwar station initially rejected the complaint from the traumatised family.

"How odd! The child's family states that when they approached the local Tarakeshwar police station to report the assault, they were turned away, with the police refusing to register their complaint! What kind of monstrous West Bengal is this?"

Dr Majumdar accused law enforcement of "attempting to shield the rapist offenders" and declared the Chief Minister a "failure," questioning her continued leadership in light of the ongoing atrocities against women and children throughout the state.