SEXUAL ASSAULT OF AN ADIVASI WOMAN BY ORISSA SECURITY PERSONNEL IN GAJAPATI DISTRICT

A Fact Finding Report by Women Against Sexual Violence and State Repression (WSS)

January 2011

An allegation of rape of an adivasi woman by security and police forces was brought to the notice of WSS by local activists who had been approached by the survivor’s father. The incident is said to have taken place on February 12, 2010 in Gajapati district in Orissa, but local activists came to know about it in August. The arrest and rape of this woman has largely gone unreported, providing impetus for the present investigation. An all-India four-woman fact finding team went to Gajapati district in Orissa on September 30 to October 1 to investigate the alleged rape. The team met the woman, her parents, people in her village, the local sarpanch, panchayat samiti members, her lawyers, local police personnel, jailer and jail pharmacist. A telephonic interview was conducted with the Superintendent of Police (SP), Gajapati district. The team also looked into relevant news reports.

Read the report of the WSS team here