Bhubaneswar, Oct. 10: A 14-year-old girl, a student of a government-run residential school for scheduled caste and scheduled tribe, was allegedly gang-raped at gunpoint by a group of four persons, who were in security uniform, in a Maoist-affected village of Koraput district, 550km from here.
However the CRPF and the BSF, who are engaged in anti-Maoist operations in the district, denied involvement of their jawans in the incident.
The victim alleged the four men, all dressed in jawan's uniform, of raping her by turn at gunpoint at a forest near Lenjiguda village in Potangi police limits in the afternoon while she was on her way from Sorisapada residential school. 'She told us that the four men gagged her mouth with her chunni and forcefully took her to the nearby forest and raped her. Later, they dumped her at the forest,' her brother said.
On hearing her scream, a group of villagers who were passing by, rescued her. The traumatised and seriously injured victim was first rushed to the nearest community health centre from where she was shifted to district headquarters hospital.
Koraput police superintendent Kanwar Vishal Singh said a case had been registered and a DSP-rank officer appointed as the investigating officer of the case. 'The girl's statement is being recorded,' said Singh.
'After preliminary investigation, we found no CoBRA jawans were involved in the crime,' said CRPF DIG (operations) Ram Charitra.
'The BSF troops are not involved in this heinous crime. The nearest BSF company location is about 35km from the spot of crime. The BSF does not operate in this area,' said the BSF in a press statement.
Villagers blocked roads to demand immediate arrest of the accused. Congress MLA from Koraput district Krishna Chandra Sagaria and his supporters also staged a demonstration in front of the police superintendent's office demanding immediate arrest of the accused.
Dowry death
Police today recovered a woman's body from the Kharasrota river near Chunabandha village of the district. Family members of the deceased, identified as Gouri Behera from Bharigada village, has lodged a police case, alleging that she was being tortured by her in-laws since the day of marriage over dowry related issues.
