For years, South Calcutta Law College’s student union room was not a space for debate or leadership training. Instead, under the control of Monojit “Mango” Mishra, it transformed into an unauthorised bar a nightly hub for alcohol, intimidation, and criminal activity that foreshadowed the horrific gang rape of a 24-year-old student on 25th June. Multiple sources, including students and faculty, describe a reign of terror enabled by systemic inaction despite Manojit’s extensive criminal history.
The union room: From campus hub to ‘Monojit’s bar’
Speaking to NDTV, a batchmate of Manojit said, He seized the union room for his personal fiefdom. Every evening, Monojit and his associates used to drink alcohol in the union room, turning it into a de facto bar and party spot. The union room became synonymous with harassment, where female students were photographed, their images allegedly morphed and circulated in WhatsApp groups. Manojit reportedly threatened to shoot staff over minor issues and once brutally assaulted a security guard.
A decade of impunity: Complaints ignored, crimes unchecked
Monojit’s ability to operate freely stemmed from a shocking pattern of institutional failure. At least 11 criminal cases were filed against Monojit across Kolkata police stations since 2013, including assault, molestation, theft, and vandalism. A 2019 complaint accused him of tearing a woman’s clothes on campus and molesting a woman in Swinhoe Lane in March 2022.
In 2023, he was rusticated for stabbing a guy. Despite the fact that he was readmitted in 2017. In 2024, he was inexplicably hired as a contractual clerical staff member, earning ₹500 daily. As a former Trinamool Congress Chhatra Parishad (TMCP) functionary, Manojit wielded political influence. Though TMCP claims he was removed in 2021, his ties allowed him to bypass accountability for years.
The 25th June attack: A crime enabled by negligence
The rape inside the college guard room was a culmination of this unchecked culture. On Manojit’s order, security guard Pinaki Banerjee allegedly locked the campus gate and ignored the victim. He is now in arrest. Police suggest he may turn approver, confirming Manojit’s control.
In the hope of silencing the survivor. Co-accused Pramit Mukherjee and Zaib Ahmed recorded the assault. Apart from that, Monojit reportedly entrapped the victim by promising a union position, a hollow offer since no official student body existed for years.
Fallout and reckoning
In the aftermath, authorities have taken belated action:
• Mishra was fired, and payments made to him were ordered recovered. The Bar Council of West Bengal cancelled his membership.
• Co-accused students were expelled, and campus security was overhauled, including restricted hours and female guards.
• A 5-hour crime scene reconstruction with the accused aimed to solidify evidence.
Institutional soul-searching: Who enabled “Mango’s Bar”?
As investigations continue, critical questions remain unanswered. Why did college leadership ignore a 2022 anonymous letter warning of Monojit’s danger? How did police fail to act on seven FIRs? And why did teachers stay silent after being threatened with violence?
The union room’s transformation from campus space to criminal enclave symbolizes a profound governance failure. For students and faculty, justice requires not only punishing Mishra but also holding accountable those who allowed his “bar” to operate with impunity.
