Raiganj, Nov. 10 -- A three-member team of forensic experts from Kolkata, Jalpaiguri and Siliguri arrived in Raiganj on Tuesday to investigate the alleged 'police encounter' of Dilip Roy, the prime accused in the rape and murder of a 12-year-old girl in North Dinajpur district.

The forensic team first visited the morgue of Raiganj Government Medical College and Hospital, where Roy's body was kept. Later, the experts visited the encounter site at Parar Pukur village near the Bengal-Bihar border under Gouri Gram Panchayat. They examined the spot and collected samples for forensic tests to ascertain the circumstances surrounding the encounter.

The minor girl had gone missing on November 3 after leaving home on her bicycle. On November 5, her naked and partly decomposed body was recovered from a forest near the bank of the Kulik river at Abdulghata village. Her parents lodged a complaint with Raiganj police, alleging that she had been gang-raped and murdered. Police conducted a post-mortem examination and launched an investigation.

Using CCTV footage and information gathered from local residents, police identified Dilip Roy as the prime accused. A search operation was subsequently launched with six separate police teams. Acting on intelligence inputs, police traced Roy to Parar Pukur village near the Bengal-Bihar border.

According to police, Roy opened fire at the pursuing personnel, prompting retaliatory firing. He sustained critical injuries and was rushed to Raiganj Government Medical College and Hospital, where doctors declared him dead.

Meanwhile, Roy's mother, Chania Roy, visited the hospital morgue on Tuesday but refused to claim her son's body. "Dilip is my only son. He was unruly and never looked after us. I live with my ailing husband at Abdulghata. He has received punishment for his sins. We do not want to take his body," she said.

BJP women's wing members distributed sweets among local residents to celebrate the encounter. Its district women's wing president Arpita Karmakar praised Chief Minister Suvendu Adhikari and the police for their action against those accused of crimes against women. A Raiganj Police District officer confirmed that the forensic team had begun its investigation into the encounter death.

Published by HT Digital Content Services with permission from Millennium Post.