Citing "increasing" incidents of crime against women in Bihar including the alleged gangrape of a 21-year-old girl in Motihari, the Chairperson of National Commission for Women today met President Pranab Mukherjee and sought his intervention.
"We met the President after increasing incidents of rape in Bihar and lack of action against them. In the past few days alone we have received information about five rape cases in Bihar. We have sought his intervention in whatever way he deems fit. Our member who went to Motihari found a huge cover-up," NCW Chairperson Lalitha Kumaramangalam said.
"We told him about the collusion between police and medical staff to brush rape cases under the carpet," she alleged, adding, "the President agreed that the status of women in certain states is very poor and we have asked him to examine it and do whatever he can."
NCW had instituted an inquiry into the Motihari gangrape, in which the girl was allegedly gangraped and brutalised with a wooden stick and a pistol. A two-member team also met the victim as part of its probe.
It has already shared the findings of its probe into the gangrape case with the Prime Minister's Office and have also sought an appointment with the Home Minister.
NCW member Sushma Sahu, who visited Motihari, alleged several lapses at the local hospital including the use of banned two-finger test to examine rape victims.
She alleged, "The medical staff of Sadar Hospital, where the rape survivor was taken, for past several years have been meddling with test reports of rape cases. They deliberately alter these test reports."
"NCW had summoned the Chief Surgeon to seek details of past rape cases as well but he has disobeyed our summons twice," she claimed.
Sahu has also alleged failure on the part of police administration. "There was a serious failure on the part of the police authorities who dismissed the incident as a case of physical assault when they received the complaint on June 15," Sahu said.
Bihar has recently reported several cases of crimes against women. In Motihari alone there have been two cases of rape, in Aurangabad there has been an acid attack and another instances of an acid attack survivor committing suicide by electrocuting herself, Kumaramangalam said.
