BHUBANESWAR /BERHAMPUR: The Crime Against Women and Children’s Wing (CAW&CW) of Odisha Crime Branch began probe into the gangrape of the 20-year-old student on Gopalpur beach even as Congress MP Priyanka Gandhi Vadra on Wednesday lit into the state government accusing it of failing to prioritise women’s safety.
In a strongly worded post on X on Wednesday, Priyanka said the incident highlighted the growing violence against women in Odisha. “The brutal assault on a girl student by ten individuals in Gopalpur, Odisha, is a heinous crime that warrants strong condemnation. Harshest words are not enough to condemn the brutality meted out to the girl. The incident highlights the growing violence against women in Odisha,” said the post.
While the horrific crime grabbed national attention, the CAW&CW team, led by IG S Shyni, visited the crime scene and examined a radius of 300 metre. It also met the survivor who is now being provided psychosocial support.
Sources said, the Crime Branch is looking to fast-track the investigation and submit the chargesheet at the earliest. During probe, it was found that the stretch of the beach where the crime took place on Sunday has seating areas for tourists but does not have illumination.
The CAW&CW team also enquired how the rape survivor and her friend reached the beach. It has come to light that around 8 pm on Sunday, Gopalpur police with all-terrain vehicle was patrolling and even passed the crime spot. Seeing the vehicle, the accused apparently gagged the victim and her male friend and waited till the patrol went away. The rape survivor apparently mentioned this in her statement.
Though the team refused to divulge any detail about the ongoing probe, sources said, it examined the mobile phone to which the male friend of the rape survivor paid Rs 1,000 using PhonePe. The accused had apparently extorted money from the duo and it was the phone number which helped the police to trace the accused within hours of the incident.
Minister of Commerce and Transport, Bibhuti Bhusan Jena, also Gopalpur MLA, visited the spot along with Berhampur SP Saravana Vivek M.
Meanwhile, in her X post, the Wayanad MP said, “The state’s prioritisation of women’s safety is questionable, especially given the Chief Minister’s admission of nearly 44,000 women and children going missing over the past five years.”
On the day, Pradesh Congress workers hit the street and staged a protest near the official residence of the chief minister over the case. On the directive of Pradesh Congress president Bhakta Charan Das, party workers led by leaders of youth and students wings of the party made an attempt to gherao Majhi’s residence demanding justice to the victim.
Shouting anti-government slogans Congress workers marched towards the residence of the Chief Minister in Unit-V area. Despite heavy police bandobast and barricades, some of the senior leaders including leader of Congress legislature party Ramachandra Kadam, Tara Prasad Bahinipati, former minister Suresh Routray and many others tried to break the cordon. However, all of them were taken to preventive custody.