‘Honeymoon’ Remark on Rape Sparks Misogyny Row, Deepens Trinamool Rift in Kolkata

The infighting in the ruling Trinamool Congress has come to the fore with the party leaders targeting one another over the rape of a law student in one of the colleges in Kolkata. When the party dissociated itself with the controversial statements made by MP Kalyan Banerjee and MLA Madan Mitra, Mahua Moitra, the MP has called the statements disgusting and said that Trinamool is not like other parties in that it speaks out, regardless of who utter them.

Mr Banerjee has retorted launching a personal attack against Ms Moitra since she is back after her honeymoon and has attacked him. Another cruel comment by him was that she was destroying a family in a reference to the wedding of a Ms Moitra with former BJD MP Pinaki Misra last month.

This is after Trinamool MPs had got into a brawl with the party leadership in Delhi months ago, and this will not go down well with the party at a time when it is preparing to go into Assembly polls in West Bengal next year.

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It happened on June 25 when a law student, aged 24, was raped in the union room of the college. The prime suspect, Manojit Mishra, 31, is an alumnus of a college and the other two suspects are Promit Mukherjee and Zaid Ahmed. All the suspects are suspected to be college students at present. The three are all arrested. The allegation is that Manojit raped the student who in the process two others shot video with intentions to blackmail the student in the future. The watch over the college has also taken the law. Manojit Mishra belongs to the youth wing of Trinamool though the party has been quick to point out that this would not absolve him of the strictest punishment.

Less than a day after the incidence made the news, Serampore MP Kalyan Banerjee made a rather insensitive statement that was contested as victim-blaming by many. "If a friend rapes a friend, how can you ensure security? Will there be police in schools? This was done by students to another student. Who will protect her (victim)?"

Yet another objectionable statement was made by the party MLA Madan Mitra. "This incident has sent a message to girls that if someone calls you when the college is closed, don't go; nothing good will come of it. If that girl had not gone there, this incident wouldn't have happened," he said.

The comments attracted criticism on social platforms and BJP criticised the Trinamool Congress and said senior party leader, Amit Malviya alleged that the Mamata Banerjee-led Trinamool was a party of rape-sympathisers, rape-enablers and serial rapists.

In the middle of the row, Trinamool leadership dissociated itself with the comments of the two leaders. "The remarks made by MP Kalyan Banerjee and MLA Madan Mitra concerning the heinous crime at South Calcutta Law College were made in their personal capacities. The party unequivocally disassociates itself from their statements and strongly condemns the same. These views do not reflect the position of the party in any manner whatsoever," it said on X.

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"Our stance remains resolute; we have zero tolerance for crimes against women and demand the strictest possible punishment for all those involved in this heinous crime," the Trinamool added.

Sharing Trinamool's post, Krishnanagar MP Moitra said, "misogyny in India cuts across party lines". "What differentiates @AITCofficial is that we condemn these disgusting comments no matter who makes them," she wrote. In the past, Ms Moitra has clashed with Mr Banerjee on several occasions.

Kalyan Banerjee had retaliated on the Trinamool post earlier and put a question whether the party was indirectly in favor of the currently ruling leaders protecting the gangs. "Mere academic statements won't bring any real change unless immediate action is taken against those leaders directly responsible. What's even more unfortunate is that some of the leaders who emerged after 2011 are themselves under question in such crimes. I also wish to clearly distance myself from those who are encouraging or protecting these criminals. To truly understand the intent behind my words and statements, a certain level of moral and intellectual alignment is required - which, unfortunately, seems to be missing," he said.

He has now come straight after Mahua Moitra and dragged up her personal life and her recent marriage and the way she is dressed. "Mahua Moitra has come back to India after completing her honeymoon. And after coming back to India, she has started fighting against me. She is saying I am anti-women. What is she? She has broken up a family and married a 65-year-old guy. And she is saying I am anti-women. She is against all women leaders of her constituency. She doesn't allow anyone to work," he said, adding, "An MP expelled from Parliament for breach of ethics is preaching me."

The case of rape of the student has become a humongous snag to the Mamata Banerjee government before the polls. A rape-murder of a doctor in Kolkata in one of the government hospitals had triggered national outrage ten months ago. And this is really another political chance that the leading opposition party in India i.e. the BJP can corner the Trinamool Congress due to this incident.

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