BHUBANESWAR: The state crime branch on Monday arrested four men in connection with the alleged gang rape of a 13-year-old girl in Bhubaneswar in August this year.
The accused were identified as Anirudha Panda, Krushna Behera, Sribachha Samal and Bijay Rout.
While Panda and Behera were employees of a private news channel, Samal and Rout were posted as security guards at the channel’s office.
The minor rape survivor’s mother had lodged a complaint with mahila police on August 30 alleging that the four persons along with a police officer sexually assaulted her daughter.
While the commissionerate police initially had probed the case, the state crime branch took over the investigation on October 6 following a directive by the director general of police, Abhay.
The accused have been arrested after the Orissa high court recently expressed displeasure over poor investigation into the case and asked Abhay to appear personally in the court through video conference.
The HC was hearing a PIL filed by lawyer Gautam Siddique, seeking a CBI probe into the case. Abhay had appeared before the high court through video conference on November 18 and had filed an affidavit on the progress of the crime branch probe.
The timing of the arrest assumed significance as additional director general of police (Crime Branch) Soumendra Priyadarshi is scheduled to appear before the Orissa high court on Wednesday to brief the court about the progress of the investigation.
“We have arrested the four accused, who were named in the FIR. The investigation is in progress. Alleged complicity of Subash Chandra Mishra, a police sub-inspector in Sundargarh district, in the case is being examined,” a senior crime branch officer said.
It must be noted, Abhay’s affidavit before the high court said the alleged involvement of the sub-inspector in the case was not ascertained so far. The affidavit, quoting Sundargarh superintendent of police, said the sub-inspector was on duty when the alleged gang rape occurred in Bhubaneswar.
Congress MLA Suresh Rautray alleged that the crime branch shielded the sub-inspector and targeted the employees of the news channel with ulterior motive.
The police denied the charge. “The investigation is still in progress. Whoever is found guilty will be brought to justice,” Abhay told media persons.