‘Cop also flashed me’: Army officer’s fiance alleges sexual assault in Odisha

Bhubaneswar: The fiancé of an army captain, who was assaulted and arrested by the Bhubaneswar police on September 15, on Thursday said she was allegedly beaten, kicked and dragged through the corridors before a police inspector also molested and flashed her.
The woman, who runs a restaurant in Bhubaneswar, spoke about the incident on Thursday shortly after being discharged from AIIMS Bhubaneswar where she was being treated for several injuries including dislocation of her jaws.
The woman, who was arrested by the police on charges of assaulting them, was released on bail on orders of the Orissa high court on Wednesday. The high court will take up her plea to cancel the first information report (FIR) filed against her and the army officer on September 26.
After she walked out free, the army officer on Wednesday filed a formal complaint against the personnel at the Bharatpur police station.
The woman, a lawyer who runs a restaurant in Bhubaneswar, said shortly after she closed her restaurant at about midnight on Sunday, she and her fiance were waylaid by a group of people who started fighting with them.
“Somehow, we managed to escape from there and went to Bharatpur Police Station to file a case. There was nobody except a woman police constable who was sitting at the reception. We requested her to register the complaint as there were several youths in the vehicle and they might follow us at any time and so police patrolling would be helpful for us. However, instead of registering my complaint, she misbehaved with me,” she said.
When she identified herself as a lawyer, she alleged, the woman constable got angry and misbehaved with her.
“In the meantime, a police patrolling vehicle with several cops including female police reached the police station. Then two female officers started pulling my hair and began thrashing me. When I pleaded with them to stop, they dragged me through the corridor of the police station. While one of them was throttling me, I bit her hand. They removed my jacket and tied both my hands with it and they used a scarf to tie both my legs and threw me into a room,” she said.
“Later, a male officer came and continuously kicked on my chest after removing my bra. Then the inspector of the police station came, unzipped his trousers, flashed his genitals and taunted me if I wanted to have a physical relationship with him. He also molested me,” the victim said.
The state government has already ordered a probe by CID into the case and suspended five police officers including inspector Dinakrushna Mishra.
The National Commission for Women has also sought an action-taken report from the state Director General of Police on the case.
DGP YB Khurania has asked the police to register a case against the hooligans who allegedly assaulted the woman and the Army officer which prompted them to approach the police in the first instance. “All wrongdoers will be identified and strict action will be taken against them,” said Khurania.