Women’s panel indicts cops in Chitra suicide

Dr Basavaraj stated that the police officials and the forensic team which performed the post-mortem, did not extended cooperation to the NCW investigating team. She also regretted thatofficials of the State Government showed disregard to a member of a statutory body performing its legitimate functions. In this context, NCW members made an appeal to the government to immediately appoint a Commissioner for Women’s Rights, to ensure that the Commission received due recognition to carry out its responsibilities, without the kind of hindrances they encountered with the authorities in Tamil Nadu. This case should also be discussed on the floor of the Parliament, in the context of non-cooperation of the State authorities, they urged.

The team also noticed that earlier, there was an inordinate delay in conducting the post-mortem and making the report available.

Dr Basavaraj specifically mentioned the attitude of the Head of the Department of Forensic Science in Kilpauk Hospital, who undertook the medical examination on the body of Chitra and who refused to give any details, on the ground that she was bound to give the report only to the RDO. The refusal became all the more suspect, in view ofthe fact that the police had already put out a report in the press on October 15 that the post-mortem report did not reveal evidence of any rape, she added.

According to the report, even in the absence of any specific forensic evidence of rape on Chitra, the evidence collected by the team members would be sufficient to come to a prima facie conclusion that a rape had been committed.

The NCW has recommended sufficient compensation from the erring officials as well as the State Government, to the relatives of Chitra. It also recommends that police officers be directed to wear their uniforms and identification badges while going for investigation, arresting persons and effecting searches, in keeping with the Supreme Court’s judgment in this regard. Also, in view of the growing atrocities against women, the State Government should undertake periodical sensitisation programmes for police officers, to promote gender justice.

It also suggested that the entire post-mortem report, the evidence of the clothesworn by Chitra and the slides of vaginal smears be forwarded to experts of similar or higher status for a second opinion.

Nuns’ rape: BJP seeks clarification

KOZHIKODE: Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) leader P S Sreedharan Pillai on Friday urged the Christian religious heads in Kerala to take the inititative to clear the misunderstanding created in the minds of the people in the light of reports that 12 out of the 19 accused arrested in the case relating to the rape of four nuns in Madhya Pradesh belonged to the Christian community itself and BJP Sangh Pariwar had no role.

This being the fact, the Kerala Chief Minister E K Nayanar, Justice V R Krishna Iyer, all those who had criticised the BJP-Sangh Pariwar for the incident, owned an apology to the people for their “deliberately” misleading speeches.