Kolkata: Bengal governor CV Ananda Bose screened CCTV footage before a select group that shows a Raj Bhavan female staffer he is accused of molesting walking out of the complex last week, prompting her to describe the disclosure of her identity without consent “as another crime that made her even contemplate suicide”.
The video of the woman between 5.33 pm and 6.41 pm on May 2 shows her approaching a police outpost within the compound and then leaving in a car. But it does not show anything to either corroborate or disprove the allegations.
TMC ministers denounced the screening and questioned the governor’s intent, specifically his stand that he would not show the video to “(CM) Mamata Banerjee and her police” and his earlier contention that his position gave him immunity from prosecution. Bengal women and child development minister Shashi Panja Panja announced a “boycott” of Bose. “We will boycott him. Will I sit beside him on the same dais when I know he is accused of molestation?” Panja asked.
In a text message, the complainant said: “The governor committed a heinous act and is now trying to cover up his misdeeds by staging a farce. I was aware that Indian law mandates protecting the identity of the complainant during an investigation. He has committed another crime.”
Speaking about “contemplating suicide”, she decried the fact that her and her family’s reputation was shattered because of the governor. “He has released a video of mine without permission, thus leaving me with no choice but to take my own life. However, if a real investigation can take place, truth will come to light,” she said.
Mamata claims ‘one more video’
Meanwhile, Bengal CM Mamata Banerjee alleged that “not everything” about governor Bose had surfaced yet and claimed she possessed “one more video, a pen drive”. She demanded Bose’s resignation, declaring that even sitting beside him felt sinful to her. Who are you to torture Bengal’s women?” she asked Bose. Mamata announced her refusal to visit Raj Bhavan again. “If you call me to the street (outside Raj Bhavan), I will meet you there. From what I hear about your deeds and scandals, it would be a sin to even sit beside you,” she said during a rally in Hooghly’s Adisaptagram.
