New Town rape-murder accused gets life, girl’s parents unhappy
Times of India | 28 August 2025
Barasat/Kolkata: A Barasat Pocso Court on Wednesday sentenced toto driver Soumitra Roy, alias Raj, to life imprisonment for raping and murdering a 14-year-old girl in New Town earlier this year.
In addition to life imprisonment under section 6 of Pocso Act and section 103(1) of BNS, the court awarded him 20 years of rigorous imprisonment under Section 65(1) of BNS, and imposed fines totalling Rs 1 lakh. In case of default, he will serve an additional 10 years.
The court's judgment came within six months of the crime. Police filed a 411-page charge sheet 15 days after the incident.
The girl's father expressed dissatisfaction with the verdict.
"We expected the court to consider that the man raped and killed a minor while pretending to drop her home. Nothing but the death penalty could have been a fitting punishment. We will consult our lawyers about moving a higher court," he told TOI.
The incident occurred on Feb 7. The class 8 student, who left home in Gouranganagar the previous night after an argument with her family, was found dead the next morning near a canal about 6 km away.
Her semi-naked body was recovered from bushes near a housing complex. Roy was arrested the following day after cops reviewed CCTV footage from New Town. Investigators said he lured the girl into his toto on the pretext of dropping her home, strangled her, and assaulted her while she was unconscious.
Roy, originally from Dattapulia in Nadia, lived in a rented house in Gouranganagar. Cops said Roy showed no remorse. After the crime, he returned home, slept next to his wife, and went about his routine until his arrest.
Following the incident, the girl's family left their New Town residence and returned to their native home in Basirhat. "We moved to New Town so our elder daughter could commute to school easily. After her death, it is impossible to stay there," the father said.
Special Public Prosecutor Bibhash Chatterjee said, "Thirty-nine witnesses, including a local businessman, testified. Medical, biological, technical, and digital evidence, supported by 17 CCTV clips, were crucial.
Geo-mapping and gait analysis technology were used to match Roy's movements with CCTV footage." He added while the prosecution sought death penalty, life imprisonment ensured the convict would remain in jail for the rest of his life.
"Often death sentences are overturned in higher courts," he said.
The prosecution relied on multiple forms of evidence.
CCTV footage placed Roy with the girl, DNA analysis confirmed presence of his semen on samples collected from the victim. Her belongings, a red cotton ligature rope, and Roy's money bag with his PAN card were found near the crime scene. Cops also matched soil and plant samples from the crime scene with those found on Roy's belongings.