In the ongoing investigation of the Kolkata law student rape case, a controversial claim has emerged from the lawyer of one of the accused, Manojit Mishra. According to the lawyer, Raju Ganguly, marks found on Mishra's body are "love bites," not scratches indicative of a struggle during the alleged assault.

Mishra, a former student leader of the Trinamool Congress (TMC) youth wing, is among three men arrested in connection with the gang rape of a 24-year-old law student on the South Calcutta Law College campus on June 25. All three accused are currently in police custody until July 8.

Ganguly addressed the media, stating that while the prosecution has highlighted scratch marks on Mishra's body, suggesting resistance from the survivor, they have ignored the presence of alleged "love bites". He argued, "If there is rape, there will never be any love bites on the body of the accused". He also said that he could not see any scratch marks from nails on Mishra.

The lawyer further questioned the timeline of events, noting that the alleged incident occurred around 10:30 pm, but the FIR was not filed until 4:45 pm the following afternoon. Ganguly has also called for the seizure and forensic analysis of the survivor's mobile phone, including an examination of her call records. He suggests that this evidence could reveal inconsistencies in her account.

Ganguly claimed that the defense has evidence that what the prosecution is calling a video of torture, is not what they say it is. He goes on to say that if there are love bites around someone's neck, people should be able to understand what kind of video it was.

These claims have sparked outrage and backlash, with many questioning the lawyer's line of defense. Critics argue that focusing on "love bites" trivializes the serious allegations of sexual assault and attempts to shift blame onto the survivor. The survivor reportedly suffered a panic attack after the assault and required an inhaler.

The case has also taken on political dimensions, with allegations of TMC links to the accused. A Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) fact-finding committee has alleged that the police are "hiding" the survivor's family and preventing access to a security guard who is also accused in the case. The BJP committee further claimed that there was an attempt to "tamper" with the FIR to change the name of the accused.