The woman, according to Raj Bhavan insiders, works in the telephone room and stays at the residential quarters on the campus itself.
She first went to the Raj Bhavan police outpost before 7pm on Thursday, from where she was taken to the Hare Street police station.
Her complaint to cops mentions two incidents. Bose asked her on April 19 to meet him with her CV; she went to meet him on April 24 at 12.45 pm, when he “touched her inappropriately and made untoward advances”, the complaint says. Bose again called her to his office on Thursday but the woman, instead of going alone, asked her supervisor to accompany her. The woman told cops that Bose asked the supervisor to leave after some time, following which he assured her of a promotion and then “touched her cheek”, prompting her to protest.
A video circulating since the evening shows the woman complaining to a senior cop that she had been molested. “This is not the first time this has happened to me,” she is heard saying on phone before explaining why she had not complained earlier: “I had kept quiet as I was scared of losing my (contractual) job.” She felt impelled to complain on Thursday, after the latest incident, to protect others from facing the ordeal she had faced. She is also seen referring to another woman who made similar complaints in the past.
“We are duty-bound to register a case and begin a probe since a woman has lodged this complaint,” a senior police officer said. Other seniors told TOI they had recorded the woman’s statement but did not register any FIR. “Article 361 of the Indian Constitution insulates the governor from any criminal proceeding while in office,” another senior official said, adding that legal experts would be consulted.
Raj Bhavan issued a statement a couple of hours later. “Truth shall triumph. I refuse to be cowed by engineered narratives. If anybody wants some election benefits by maligning me, God bless them. But they cannot stop my fight against corruption and violence in Bengal,” it read. Another statement thanked Raj Bhavan staff “who expressed solidarity against derogatory narratives circulated by two disgruntled employees as political parties’ agents”.
Yet another release issued after 10pm banned the entry of cops and state finance minister Chandrima Bhattacharya in Raj Bhavan premises. The cop ban was to prevent their entry “in the guise of conducting unauthorised, illegitimate, sham and motivated investigations to placate political bosses during election”, the statement said, banning minister Bhattacharya’s entry in Raj Bhavan premises in Kolkata, Darjeeling and Barrackpore. Governor C V Ananda Bose would not attend any finance department event, the statement said, adding that the attorney-general would be consulted for legal steps against Bhattacharya. PM Narendra Modi reached Raj Bhavan at 10pm, where he stayed the night. He is slated to leave Raj Bhavan on Friday morning for campaigning in East Burdwan, Nadia and Birbhum.
The TMC posted on X: “Appalling and unthinkable! The sanctity of Raj Bhavan, a symbol of our constitutionality, has been tarnished. Hours before the PM was supposed to arrive at Raj Bhavan to spend the night, a woman was allegedly molested by the governor under the false pretext of a job. Such despicable behaviour must be condemned in the strongest terms. Justice must be delivered swiftly for the victim, no excuses, no delays!” Finance minister Bhattacharya condemned “the alleged misconduct by the governor”, which she called “unbecoming of any official, especially the head of State”, before demanding “an immediate and a thorough investigation”.
The BJP response was more nuanced. “This looks like a political conspiracy. But, if there is truth in the complaint, the centre will take adequate action,” BJP MLA and assembly opposition leader Suvendu Adhikari said.