Kolkata, July 9 (IANS) Senior Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) leader and the West Bengal Minister of Panchayat Affairs and Rural Development, Dilip Ghosh, on Thursday described the “intellectuals” condemning and protesting against the encounter-killing of an accused in the alleged rape and murder of a 12-year-old minor girl at Barupur in South 24 Parganas district as hypocrites.

“These intellectuals are not just hypocrites. There are real anti-social elements who are also responsible for the increase in such social crimes. These intellectuals are only conscious about their self-images. They organise protests when such crimes happen. And when the criminals are punished, they also protest against the punishments,” said Ghosh while speaking to the media persons in the morning.

According to him, those who commit crimes and those who stand by the criminals are equally criminal. “They should be treated with eggs,” said Ghosh, always known for his straightforward statements, which have created several controversies in the past.

Since the encounter of Pravas Mondal, the first arrested accused in the alleged rape and murder of the minor girl, which happened on Wednesday, the political circles in the state have been divided over the development.

On one hand, the Mamata Banerjee-led faction in the Trinamool Congress and the CPI(M) leadership have condemned the encounter. The BJP and the rebel-majority section in the Trinamool Congress, on the other hand, have welcomed the development.

Congress has maintained a safe stand by restricting its reaction to the demand for a high-level enquiry into the matter.

Similarly, Bengali society, too, is divided over the encounter development, with social media being flooded with reactions on the shooting incident since Wednesday. While a large section of the netizens, especially women, have welcomed the encounter and described it as “perfect on-the-spot justice”, a small section has condemned the encounter and predicted that encouraging such encounters would make the police more trigger-happy.

In such a situation, feel political observers, Dilip Ghosh’s statement will surely add more spice to the ongoing social and political debate in the matter.

–IANS

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