Uproar in Odisha assembly over ‘rape-suicide’ of dalit woman

BHUBANESWAR/KENDRAPADA: Speaker Surya Narayan Patro on Monday asked the government to make a statement in the

assembly

on Tuesday on a dalit woman committing suicide on November 7 allegedly after she was raped in front of her parents.


The speaker’s ruling came after the opposition created a ruckus over the issue during zero hour, forcing Patro to adjourn the house twice.

Raising the alleged rape-suicide issue, Congress legislature party leader Narasingha Mishra said allegation of a heinous crime has appeared in a section of the media.

“The speaker must give a ruling on the issue,” he said. Referring to chief minister Naveen Patnaik’s speech in the assembly on Friday not to politicise the issue, Narasingha said if raising such sensitive issues in the house is politics, then Naveen has no right to stay in power.

Quoting media reports, Narasingha said the girl was raped in front of her parents, who were also assaulted by the accused. The speaker said since the matter is already in public knowledge and police have registered a case, law will take its own course. Leader of opposition Pradipta Naik joined in, saying how the speaker can stop a member from raising such a sensitive issue.

The opposition members, both BJP and Congress, got agitated and stormed into the well pressing for a ruling from the speaker, forcing him to adjourn the house first for 20 minutes and again till 3 pm. Normalcy returned after lunch, when the speaker gave a ruling for a government statement on the issue.

According to a complaint filed at Naugaon police station in

Jagatsinghpur

district, the 23-year-old native of a village under Naugaon police station in Jagatsinghpur district committed suicide by hanging herself from the ceiling after repeated rapes by the accused, who also pasted her obscene photos on the walls.

“My daughter was forced to end her life as the accused distributed and pasted some obscene photos of my daughter at many places in the village to defame her,” the girl’s mother said.

Police have arrested the accused.

He has been booked him under IPC Section 292 (use of obscene language), 306 (abatement of suicide) and under the provisions of SC and ST Prevention of Atrocities Act.