New Delhi: Over 20 women were allegedly taken to the Port Blair residence of former Chief Secretary, Andaman & Nicobar (A&N) Islands, Jitendra Narain during his year-long tenure, with some of them getting jobs in lieu of being sexually exploited. A probe into the explosive ‘job-for-sex’ racket began after a 21-year-old woman accused Narain and Labour Commissioner RL Rishi of gang rape and sexual assault.
The woman, in her complaint, had said that she was introduced to Rishi by a hotel owner when she was searching for a job. She alleged that the commissioner took her to the residence of the Chief Secretary where she was offered alcohol but she declined and was then assured government employment. Subsequently, she alleged, she was brutally and sexually abused by the two men, the Indian Express (IE) reported. The woman added that the assault was repeated two weeks later and instead of the job, she was threatened to not disclose the attack to anyone.
In an exclusive report, The Indian Express reported that Call Data Records (CDRs) and cell phone tower locations of the mobile phones of the two suspended bureaucrats and of the 21-year-old “match” the alleged sequence of events, as provided by the woman. IE also got confirmation from its sources that the hard disk of the digital video recorder of the CCTV camera at the Chief Secretary’s house was first erased and, subsequently, it was removed at the time of his transfer from Port Blair to Delhi in July.
Narain has denied the charges in letters to the Home Ministry and A&N administration, calling it a “conspiracy” against him and claiming that he has “specific materials which demonstrate the fake nature of the case”. He has also challenged his presence in Port Blair on one of the two dates given in the FIR and cited air tickets and appointment schedules to show his presence in New Delhi, the report added.
Narain is scheduled to appear before the SIT on Friday, October 28, which has been set by the Calcutta High Court as the deadline for his appearance, according to a report in The Quint.
