Majhi orders judicial inquiry into army officer's custodial 'torture', 'sexual assault' of fiancee

Bhubaneswar: Odisha Chief Minister Mohan Charan Majhi has ordered a judicial inquiry into the alleged torture of an army officer and the “sexual assault” of his fiancee at a police station here.

The state government is committed to taking strict action against all persons or officials who are found guilty, Majhi said.

According to a statement released by the Chief Minister's Office (CMO), the judicial inquiry will be presided over by Justice Chittaranjan Das, and the report will be filed within 60 days.

The state government also requested the Orissa High Court to supervise the investigation being carried out by the Crime Branch of the Odisha Police.

While emphasising on rule of the law, Majhi said his government respects the Indian Army. "The state government is fully concerned about the dignity, safety and rights of women," the CMO statement said on Sunday evening.

Meanwhile, the Odisha government has suspended five personnel of the Bharatpur police station, and registered a case against them for “torturing the army officer and sexually harassing his fiancee”.

The alleged incident took place on September 15 when the army officer posted in West Bengal and his fiancee approached Bharatpur police station to lodge a complaint of road rage in which they were allegedly harassed by some local youths.

However, a verbal altercation took place between the duo and some policemen following which the officer and his fiancee were allegedly assaulted at the police station.

BJD president and Leader of Opposition Naveen Patnaik had demanded a court-monitored SIT probe and a judicial inquiry into the incident. The opposition party has also called for a Bhubaneswar bandh on September 24.