The Centre responded to Mamta Banerjee’s letter with data.

The Union Minister for Women and Child Development has responded to the second letter of West Bengal CM Mamata Banerjee. In this, strict laws and punishment have been demanded for heinous crimes like rape and murder.

In her second letter to Prime Minister Narendra Modi, Mamata Banerjee has demanded strict central laws and harsh punishment for heinous crimes like rape and murder. Both these letters have come amid the CBI investigation into the rape and murder of a junior doctor at Kolkata’s RG Kar Medical College and Hospital.

The BJP had called Mamata a liar over her letters and questioned why she did not do anything to ensure the implementation of the existing stringent rules and laws for the safety of women in her state.

In her reply to Mamata Banerjee, Union Women and Child Development Minister Annapurna Devi said, “Regarding the information given in your letter about the status of Fast Track Special Courts (FTSC) and Special POCSO Courts in West Bengal, I would like to mention that as per the information received from the Calcutta High Court, West Bengal has established 88 Fast Track Courts (FTC). These are not the same as the Fast Track Special Courts (FTSC) under the Central Government scheme.”

He further wrote, “Despite 48,600 rape and POCSO cases pending in West Bengal, the state has not made the additional 11 FTSCs operational. These can be special POCSO courts as per the requirement of the state or combined FTSCs dealing with both rape and POCSO cases. As can be seen, the information contained in your letter in this regard is factually incorrect and appears to be a step towards covering up the delay in making the FTSCs operational by the state.”

BJP co-in-charge of West Bengal Amit Malviya has also questioned the Bengal Chief Minister for not taking adequate steps to ensure strict compliance of rules and laws for the safety of women and girls.

The rape and murder of a junior doctor at Kolkata’s RG Kar Medical College and Hospital has sparked outrage across the country. Doctors and others in the medical profession have demanded fundamental reforms to ensure respect and safety at their workplace.