A station house officer (SHO) was suspended on Thursday in connection with the alleged gangrape and subsequent suicide of an 18-year-old tribal woman in Kondagaon district of Bastar region, Chhattisgarh, two months ago.
Police said that seven persons were accused, of which five, including two minors, were arrested on Wednesday.
The woman’s uncle had alleged that despite being aware of the incident, then SHO of Dhanora police station had not investigated the matter.
“Media reports revealed then Dhanora SHO Ramesh Sori had received information about the incident through local sources 15 to 20 days after it took place and he had asked the woman’s family about it. But Sori neither informed his seniors nor took further legal action,” the statement released by Chhhattisgarh government stated.
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Sori, now posted in Kondagaon Police Lines, was suspended with immediate effect and an enquiry was ordered against him, it said.
The woman’s body was exhumed on Wednesday and an autopsy was conducted, it said.
{{/usCountry}}The woman’s body was exhumed on Wednesday and an autopsy was conducted, it said.
{{/usCountry}}A case has been registered under Indian Penal Code sections 365 (kidnapping), 376-D (gang-rape), 306 (abetment of suicide), 506 (criminal intimidation), 201 (causing disappearance of evidence of offence) and 34 (common intention), it added.
As per the statement of her family members, on July 19, the girl had attended a wedding with them in the nearby Kanagaon village. The same night, around 11pm, two boys from Kanagaon allegedly dragged her to a nearby forest, where she was sexually assaulted by five others. The next morning, the woman returned home without informing anyone and hanged herself.
Her uncle later told reporters that after her death, two boys from the locality told him that she was sexually assaulted by some men in Kanagaon.
Just two days after that, Dhanora station house officer (SHO) called him to the police station and asked why he had not reported the matter to police, he claimed.
He alleged that the SHO had also assured him he would lodge a case, but took no further action.
However, Inspector General Sunderaaj said that after her death, a police team had gone to the village and asked her family members to report the matter.
“Recently, her father also attempted to kill himself by consuming poison, but he was saved after receiving timely medical treatment. The exact reason behind his suicide attempt is not known,” Sundarraj said.