Following the incident of a middle-aged woman being stripped, paraded naked and assaulted at Vantamuri in Belagavi district, a team from the National Commission for Women (NCW) on Saturday visited the district hospital in Belgavi where she is undergoing treatment.
The team led by NCW member Delina Khongdup interacted with the victim and collected details from her about the incident. Deputy Commissioner of Belagavi Nitesh Patil and Police Commissioner Rohan Jagadish accompanied them.
More arrests
Meanwhile, the Belagavi police have arrested three more accused persons, including a minor, in connection with the incident. After the incident came to light, the Kakati police had registered a case against 13 persons and now with the arrest of three more, the total number of arrested persons in the case has risen to 11. Two more accused are absconding.
Belagavi Police Commissioner S.N. Sidramappa has issued an order suspending police inspector of Kakati Vijaykumar Sinnur for failure to prevent incident and dereliction of duty.
Meanwhile, upping its ante, a fact-finding committee of the Opposition BJP visited the district hospital on December 16. Members of Parliament Aprajita Sarangi, Sunita Duggal, Locket Chatterjee, and Ranjeeta Koli, and national secretary Asha Lakra met the woman and collected details. They were accompanied by Mangala Angadi, MP, Shashikala Jolle, MLA, and others.
The committee subsequently visited Vantamuri and the Kakati Police Station. Before meeting the victim, the team members held a video conference with party’s national president J.P. Nadda.
Speaking to presspersons, the team members alleged that the Chief Minister and the Congress government had been apathetic towards the plight of the victim. When media persons asked questions on the urgency with which the BJP fact-finding committee had landed in Karnataka but had not shown the same urgency in case of such heinous crimes in BJP-ruled States, they accused media persons of “indulging in politics”.
The BJP also held protests in all districts condemning the incident.
Responding to a query on the issue, Chief Minister Siddaramaiah said the government had taken all necessary action in the case and that the BJP was only “politicising” it.
High Court Order
On Thursday, the High Court of Karnataka issued an order restricting visitors to the district hospital in Belagavi to meet the victim. Taking up the matter in consideration of its urgency, the Bench comprising the Chief Justice of the High Court of Karnataka, directed that “no person, individual, group, associations, political parties, or the like shall visit the place of the victim except with the prior written permission of the medical officer-in-charge of the hospital or the doctor treating the victim. Needless to say that the order shall not prevent the family members of the victim and official representatives of the statutory authorities/commissioners or the investigating agencies to visit the victim in a need-based manner”.
NHRC notice
In a related development, taking suo motu cognizance of the media reports about the Vantamuri incident, the National Human Rights Commission (NHRC) has issued notices to the Chief Secretary of Karnataka and the Director-General of Police seeking a detailed report within four weeks. It should include the status of the registration of the FIR, progress in investigation, arrest, if any, compensation under the Victim Compensation Scheme, if paid, and the steps taken or to be taken to prevent such incidents in the State.
Also Read | Karnataka Assembly expresses shock over woman being tied to pole and stripped
In a press release, the NHRC observed that the contents of the news report, if true, raise a serious issue of violation of the human rights of the victim woman. The purported act, as reported, seems to have a stereotyped patriarchal approach, which is a clear demonstration of the violation of the right to life and dignity of the victim, it has said.
