Deaths of 2 rape-murder accused in police firing not encounters: Bengal BJP chief

Bengal BJP chief Samik Bhattacharya said the deaths of two rape-murder accused in alleged police gunfights in North and South 24 Parganas cannot be called encounters. Claiming that the rule of law now prevails in the state, he said the previous TMC government had fostered lawlessness and an atmosphere of fear.Bengal BJP chief Samik Bhattacharya. Kolkata,Oct 27, 2026 16:43 ISTBJP's West Bengal unit president, Samik Bhattacharya, on Tuesday said the deaths of two rape-murder accused in alleged gunfights with the police in two districts cannot be called "encounters."A man arrested in the rape and murder of a 17-year-old girl was killed allegedly in a gunfight with the police in North 24 Parganas district's Gaighata early on Tuesday.During the reconstruction of the crime scene, the accused had allegedly snatched the service revolver of a police officer and opened fire on the personnel, leading to retaliatory firing, a senior officer said.This was the second such incident in three months after another accused in the rape and murder of an 11-year-old girl was killed in an alleged gunfight with the police at Baruipur in South 24 Parganas district in July. He had also allegedly snatched an officer's revolver and fired at the personnel during crime scene reconstruction, prompting the police to retaliate.The state BJP chief said terming the deaths of the two accused as "encounters" is misleading. "The situation that forced the police to fire at the accused persons in both cases cannot be termed as encounters," Bhattacharya said.The rule of law is prevailing in Bengal, instead of the law of the ruler, which was "prevalent during the previous government", Bhattacharya claimed.An NHRC-appointed committee investigating the 2021 post-poll violence in West Bengal had stated in its report that the "law of the ruler prevailed in the state, not the rule of law."The TMC has won the 2021 West Bengal assembly elections.Maintaining that the term "syndicate" has been abolished in West Bengal, the state BJP chief said people can now step out without fear.Accusing the previous Trinamool Congress government of creating lawlessness and an atmosphere of fear in the state, the BJP had, in its 2026 assembly poll campaign, stressed bringing back the rule of law if it won the elections.- Ends