Dubbing the rape of a 35-year-old woman in Maharashtra's Bhandara district very shameful, Deputy Chief Minister Devendra Fadnavis on Tuesday said police and health officials will be sensitised again to handle cases related to crime against women.
Replying to debate in the Legislative Council, Fadnavis, who also holds the Home portfolio, said a Special Investigation Team (SIT) has been formed to probe the incident. The SOPs (Standard Operating Procedures) exist but they are not followed. They have to be followed at the police station and the hospital. I want to assure the House that police and health officials will be sensitised again, he said.
The incident occurred on June 30 when the woman was going to her brother's home in Kamargaon in Goregaon tehsil in the Bhandara district. She was raped by a driver who befriended her and left her on the spot. The victim was later taken to the Lakhni police station but she was allowed to leave the next morning. On the next day, she was allegedly raped by two other men Amit Salve and Ijaz Ansari at Kanhalmoh.
On August 2, some passers-by found her lying unconscious and alerted Kardha police who shifted her to a hospital. Fadnavis said the woman is suffering from psychosis and undergoing treatment. She is unable to narrate many things. The first accused is yet to be arrested, he said.
The woman revealed that Shriram Murkute, a tempo driver, allegedly raped her. Fadnavis said the police tried to trace the accused by checking the people with that name and also the vehicle. They found an 18-year-old man from Yavatmal with the same name, but his description did not match, while another person with the same name was lodged in the Balaghat jail. It appears the tempo driver is a local and the woman said since he behaved nicely with her, she didn't want to register any case, Fadnavis said, adding that the woman was being counselled. We told her that your complaint has been registered, so we need to take action against him. The probe is on. Till the first accused (Murkute), is arrested, it will be wrong to say that the probe has been completed, Fadnavis said. The woman is being treated and assistance is provided to her.
This is a very shameful incident. If we look at the entire incident, there is a scope for improvement in our system, the deputy chief minister said. He told the Legislative Council that the victim did not tell the police at the Lakhni police station that she was raped. Though she left in good faith, the police should have started searching for her when she did not return in 30 minutes. In the evening, the woman reached Kardha on foot. Until then the police did not know where she was. This is a serious issue, he said, adding that action has been taken against three police personnel. An enquiry against the superintendent of police was underway and the officer was transferred.
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