3 Police Stations Refused Cuttack Gang-Rape Plaint, Claims Odisha Congress MLA Sofia Firdous
Cuttack: The role of police has come under scanner in the alleged gangrape of a19-year-old college girl in Odisha’s Cuttack city.
The Congress has alleged that the girl had to run from one police station to another before her complaint was accepted. “She went to the Puri Ghat police station, then to Sadar police station and then to Barang before the FIR was lodged by the Badambadi police station,” Congress’s Cuttack-Barabati MLA Sofia Firdous claimed.
Firdous met DGP YB Khurania on Saturday over the incident and submitted a memorandum, demanding an investigation into the role of police. “We appreciate the fact that 6 people have been arrested but we want to know why the FIR was not lodged for 20-25 days. We want to know the reason for this gap…,” she told reporters.
The legislator said that the delay is alarming and raises serious concern about the responsiveness of the law enforcement agencies. “Cuttack is a densely populated area and culturally rich and if such incidents are happening in this city, it is a matter of concern,” she added.
The Cuttack-Barabati MLA also sought the DGP’s intervention to ensure the safety of the victim’s family.
Cuttack’s Deputy Commissioner of Police (DCP) Jagmohan Meena said that the allegations levelled by the MLA will be investigated. “We came to know about the allegation that the police did not register a case at first from the MLA. We will certainly inquire into the matter. However, neither the victim nor anyone from her family has made such an allegation. The survivor is safe,” he told PTI.
Six persons, including the girl’s boyfriend and a minor, were arrested after the case was registered at Badambadi police station on November 4 under Sections related to sexual assault, intimidation and abetment and SC/ST Act & IT Act. Three of the accused were arrested on November 5 and the remaining three the following day.
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According to the complainant, her boyfriend had invited her to a cafe under Puri Ghat police limits during Dussehra holiday to celebrate her birthday. He, however, allegedly with the help of the cafe owner filmed some of their intimate moments there and later used it along with his friends to blackmail and rape her multiple times.
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