“The accused was arrested after receiving a complaint of rape. An investigation into the incident has been initiated,” Bankura Superintendent of Police Vaibhav Tiwari said.

In her police complaint, the woman alleged that Misra had kept her locked in his house and repeatedly assaulted her sexually. After managing to escape on Friday, she and her family went to the police station, where she lodged a complaint against the TMC leader. The woman was subsequently sent to the hospital for a medical examination.

Following the complaint, the accused was arrested by the police. In response, the Trinamool Congress’s Bishnupur organizational district leadership announced his suspension from both the party and his position on the panchayat samiti.

“We came to know around 10 am on Friday morning that the a TMC leader has been accused of rape and torture of women. We have immediately decided to suspend him from the party indefinitely. The accused is holding the post of bidyut karmadhakhya of the Panchayat Samiti. We already told the administration to remove him from panchayat samiti as well,” said Vikramjit Chattopadhyay, president of Bishnupur organizational district of TMC.

State BJP MLA, Diwakar Gharami, has called for severe punishment for the accused, accusing the TMC of creating “a situation like Sandeshkhali” in the state.

“We are saying again and again, in the entire state a situation like Sandeshkhali has been created courtesy of Trinamool Congress leaders. This incident is proof of that. This is a very unfortunate incident. We don’t have the language to condemn. After two weeks, the accused will again be seen walking around with the Trinamool flag in his hand. We demand the strictest punishment,” he said.

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