On Tuesday, PCC president Niranjan Patnaik reached Kalimati village under Bamebari police station in Champua Assembly constituency where an orphan Adivasi girl was allegedly raped and murdered on August 25 night.
The local police have failed to nab the culprit even after 11 days of occurrence of the crime and it is alleged that the police was taking the case in a casual manner. Sources revealed that after the death of her parents, the deceased who was 13 years old was living with her foster mother along with her elder brother, a mechanic, in a nearby garage.
However, some days back one Guru Munda, an Adivasi youth of a neighborhood village, came and stayed in the next room of the victim and her foster mother, on rental basis. It is said that Guru, a dumper driver, after staying there for some days, brought one unknown woman with him and it was totally opposed by the family of the deceased. So, Guru was forced to vacate the room. Then Guru had again come to there just 15 days before the crime took place. However, on August 25 evening, the victim was alone as her foster mother had gone to her own parents' house. The next day, when she came back she found the victim was hanging from a ceiling.
There were marks of injury on her private parts. After an FIR was lodged, the local police reached at the spot and recovered a money purse along with ID card of Guru. It was the duty of police to immediately take into custody the concerned ID card holder for inquiry, but in the case, the police let the accused go scot- free, saying that it was a suicide case.
PCC president Patnaik said alleged that there is total failure of law and situation in the mining rich Keonjhar district and Adivasi people are subjected to harassment and torture. He visited the spot of the crime and demanded an investigation by the Crime Branch.
Patnaik along with district Congress president Biplab Mishra, Ashok Kumar Thakkar, Jadumani Barik and others interacted with the tribals. Then they went to local Bamebari Police station and found that the IIC was absent. However, the Investigation Officer (IO) told that an inquiry was going on. Later, Patnaik met the SP, Keonjhar.