Pipili rape case: Odisha govt to challenge relief to ex-policeman

Cuttack: The Odisha government is mulling to move the High Court challenging the January 23 decision of the State Administrative Tribunal in which it had set aside the government's dismissal order of a disgraced police inspector. Amulya Kumar Champatiray, in his capacity as inspector in-charge of Pipili police station in November 2011, had refused to register an FIR and conduct probe into a rape and attempt to murder incident of a Dalit girl.

The 19-year-old rape victim died in June 2012 after remaining in a coma for six months. The decision to challenge the SAT order in the High Court came to light on Saturday when the government informed this through an affidavit to Justice PK Mohanty Commission of Enquiry.

The Commission is probing the case that had put the BJD government on mat and forced Chief Minister Naveen Patnaik to remove a Cabinet minister, shunt out an IPS officer besides dismissing a police inspector from service. In response to a petition alleging that the government was not serious in taking appropriate action against the disgraced inspector for which the SAT had quashed his dismissal order, the Commission had asked the government to file its counter plea.

After buying time for over three months, the government informed the Commission that the law department after considering the matter has requested the Advocate General to prepare all documents to challenge the Tribunal order in the High Court. It may be noted that the Crime branch after having prima facie established criminal liability against Champatiray, had filed a chargesheet against him for deliberately neglecting in registering a case in the case.

But Champatiray's trial was warranted only under Section 4 of the SC and ST (Prevention of Atrocities) Act and he was not booked under any other sections of IPC. Two crime branch officials deposing before the Commission also admitted that during their investigation, they had prima facie established that the incident of November, 2011 was correlated to the incident of molestation of another Dalit girl in the area way back in 2008. The victim of the 2008 incident had allegedly committed suicide in the same year.