Upping the ante against the BJD government, the BJP president Amit Shah has decided to depute a team of central party leaders to probe in to the Kunduli gang rape case in Koraput district where the victim committed suicide after three months due to the failure of the state police administration.
(The state government had ordered a judicial inquiry in to the rape incident, prior to the suicide of the victim and on Monday it directed the crime branch to investigate the suicide by the victim) Mr Shah was appraised of the situation and the alleged ‘cover-up’ by Arun Singh, general secretary in charge of Odisha.
A BJP release said Mr Shah was shocked and denounced the attempted cover-up by the Naveen Patnaik government. He has asked Ms Saroj Pande, Jyoti Dhrube and Ambulata to conduct a spot inquiry and report to him. Meanwhile the state unit of the BJP on Monday staged protests and submitted a memorandum demanding action against the errant police officers who had denied that the girl had been raped.
The BJP has also raised questions on contradictory reports presented by the forensic laboratory. In a related development adivasi and dalit women activists under the banner of Odisha NariSamaj organised protest• rally simultaneously in Koraput, Baripada and Sambalpur on Monday and submitted the memorandum to district collectors•demanding a high level independent probe in to the Kuduli gang rape and suicide. Till now our administration has not provided justice to the minor girl rape victim, decried the ONS.
A CBI inquiry must be conducted, the accused arrested, demanded the ONS. It may be noted here that senior politicians like Bijay Mahapatra and Narasingha Mishra have wondered the wisdom of the BJP here in demanding a CBI probe when the centre can do it since the allegation made by the victim was against four central para military men .