Kolkata (West Bengal) [India], November 9 (ANI): West Bengal Chief Minister Suvendu Adhikari on Monday said Trinamool Congress (TMC) MLA Paresh Ram Das was attempting to flee to Mumbai and asserted that the allegations against him in the rape case must be true.

Adhikari said his alleged attempt to flee raised questions about the allegations against him.

He said, 'He was fleeing to Mumbai. The allegations against him must be true; why else would he try to flee? When I was the Leader of the Opposition, he used abusive language. He had encroached on irrigation land and built an old-age home on it.'A

Additional SP Atish Biswas said the complaint against TMC MLA dates back to 2023.

'We received information today that he was attempting to flee to Mumbai on an IndiGo flight to avoid cooperating with the investigation. Acting on this information, we dispatched a special team from the Special Operations Group (SOG) to Netaji Subhas Chandra Bose International Airport. With the assistance of the Bidhannagar Police Commissionerate, our team detained him at the airport. After questioning him, we subsequently arrested him. We are now bringing him back to Baruipur Jail. As I mentioned, it is a rape complaint registered. The complaint relates to an incident from 2023, and MLA Paresh Ram Das is the principal accused. He was detained today and subsequently arrested,' the cop told ANI. 

Meanwhile, Former Actor and Advisor to the West Bengal Govt, Mithun Chakraborty, on the arrest of TMC MLA Paresh Ram Das, said, 'There must have been something against him. Otherwise, why would the police arrest someone at the airport? The police cannot arrest anyone arbitrarily. There must be a summons or an FIR, and only then can an arrest be made.'

Paresh Ram Das, TMC MLA from Canning Paschim Assembly constituency, was arrested at Netaji Subhas Chandra Bose International Airport in Kolkata on Monday in connection with an alleged rape case, Baruipur Police District said in a statement.

According to the police, Ram Das was apprehended while allegedly attempting to evade investigation by travelling from Kolkata to Mumbai.

The case was registered at Canning Police Station on September 5 under Sections 376, 323, 420, 120B and 506 of the IPC.

The operation was carried out by the Special Operations Group (SOG) of Baruipur Police District under the direct supervision of the Superintendent of Police and other senior officers, with assistance from Bidhannagar Police.

The accused is being brought to Baruipur Police District for further investigation and necessary legal proceedings.

He will be questioned in connection with the case and produced before the court on November 10 after completion of the requisite legal formalities, police said. (ANI)