Three police stations refused to take complaint of Cuttack gang rape survivor: Congress

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| Photo Credit: AP

The Congress alleged that three police stations in Odisha’s Cuttack had refused to take the complaint of the 19-year-old college student who survived multiple gang rapes.

Congress’s Cuttack-Barabati MLA Sofia Firdous demanded an investigation into the role of police for allegedly making the woman go from one police station to another to lodge the complaint.

The woman 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, she claimed.

Arrest so far

Police said they have arrested six people, including the woman’s boyfriend, for gang-raping her multiple times and videographing the acts.

The woman claimed that she had gone to a cafe with her boyfriend in the Puri Ghat police station area during Dussehra to celebrate her birthday. However, the boyfriend allegedly with the help of the cafe owner filmed on his phone some of their intimate moments there.

With that video, the boyfriend and his friends blackmailed her and raped her multiple times. The complaint was lodged on November 4, and the accused were arrested over the next two days, police said.

Firdous met DGP YB Khurania on Saturday (November 10, 2024) over the incident and submitted a memorandum.

“When the victim went to lodge an FIR against the accused persons, three police stations in Cuttack refused to register it. Therefore, I urged the DGP to investigate why the FIR was not lodged at first,” she told reporters.

“The delay is alarming and raises serious concern about the responsiveness of the law enforcement agencies, especially when it comes to addressing the crimes against women,” she added.

Ms. Firdous claimed that the survivor could not be reached at present, expressing concern about her well-being and safety.

Delay in lodging FIR

Stating that such type of incidents had never taken place in Cuttack, which is densely populated, she said, “If such incidents are happening now in this city, then it is a matter of worry.” Cuttack’s Deputy Commissioner of Police (DCP) Jagmohan Meena told PTI that an inquiry will be made into the allegations levelled by the MLA.

“We came to know about the allegation that the police did not register a case at first from the MLA. The police will certainly inquire into the matter. However, neither the victim nor anyone from her family has made such an allegation. The victim is safe,” he said.

Law Minister Prithiviraj Harichandan on Friday (November 8, 2024) said the state government has zero tolerance towards crimes against women, and efforts were underway to make Odisha free of such crimes by 2026.