WEST BENGAL: West Bengal Congress chief Adhir Ranjan Chowdhury has said that a strict probe must be conducted in the Swati Maliwal assault case and no one has the authority to violate any woman's rights.

"This is a serious offence which should not have happened. Any person, whether Minister or not, does not have the right to assault a woman, regardless of the fact she is an MP, MLA or not," Chowdhury said speaking at a press conference on Friday.

"Strict action should be taken against this. The guilty one should be arrested, interrogated and should be brought to justice," he added.

The Congress and the Aam Aadmi Party (AAP) are partners in the opposition INDIA bloc and have a seat-sharing agreement in Delhi, Haryana and Gujarat. Earlier, on April 16 Congress General Secretary Priyanka Gandhi had asserted that the party always stood by any woman who was a victim of atrocity.