A tribal lady accuses junior minister John Barla of shielding rape accused

BY A STAFF REPORTER

A tribal woman has accused junior minister John Barla of extorting money and threatening her with dire consequences. According to Jalpaiguri superintendent of police, Debarshi Dutta, the woman has filed a complaint at the Banarhat police station that she was allegedly raped and sexually exploited by a businessman Jaichand Agarwal, over a period of time. She claimed that she mustered courage to meet her local MP, junior union minister John Barla. In her complaint the woman mentioned that Barla warned her not to press charges against the concerned businessman. She alleged that Agarwal who had sexually exploited her had paid off several lakhs of rupees to Barla. Dutta said Jaichand Agarwal has been arrested and investigations are on.