Kolkata, Jun 24: Two persons have been arrested in connection with the murder of a schoolgirl in West Bengal’s Nadia district, taking the total number of arrests in the case to 13, a senior police officer said on Wednesday.
The development came less than 24 hours after Chief Minister Suvendu Adhikari’s assurance in the Assembly that the victim’s family would get justice.
The officer said Sabir Sheikh and Jiarul Sheikh were arrested during a late-night operation on Tuesday and will be produced before a court on Wednesday.
Tamanna Khatun (13), a student from Kaliganj in Nadia district, died after she got hit by a bomb hurled during a Trinamool Congress victory procession taken out following the Kaliganj Assembly bypoll results on June 23 last year.
A senior police officer said sustained efforts were underway to trace all those involved in the incident.
“We have been conducting raids since the incident. Two absconding accused were apprehended during a targeted operation on Tuesday night. With these arrests, a total of 13 persons have been taken into custody in the case.
“The investigation is progressing, and all legal steps are being pursued to ensure justice,” the police officer told PTI.
The police had earlier claimed that the girl’s death could have occurred after she was hit by the splinters of the bomb, which was hurled during a clash between two groups in the locality.
Referring to the case on Tuesday, Adhikari said in the state Assembly that his government had adopted a zero-tolerance approach towards crimes against women and that Tamanna’s family would get justice.
Tamanna’s mother, Sabina Yasmin, who met the chief minister at the Assembly on Tuesday evening, said, “The chief minister listened to us patiently and assured us that justice would be delivered. Soon after that, the two accused were arrested. I am so very happy that my daughter is on the way to getting justice.” (PTI)
