By IANS,
Bhubaneswar : Kalpana Dash, who became the first Oriya woman to scale Mount Everest last month, was allegedly manhandled and abused by a policeman at a temple in the state’s Keonjhar district, her brother said Monday.
Kalpana had gone with her mother, brother Pradeep and uncle to the Maa Tarini temple in Ghatagon in Keonjhar Sunday to offer prayers for her good health. While she was praying, a constable forcibly dragged her out and paid no heed to her pleas even after the mountaineer revealed her identity, Pradeep told the police.
The policeman also passed filthy comments, Pradeep alleged. According to witnesses, Kalpana was shocked and was seen weeping. Kalpana, a lawyer by profession, has been keeping unwell ever since she came back after scaling the world’s highest peak.
District authorities duly apologised to Kalpana and removed the policeman, identified as Chandramani Das, from duty after Pradeep filed a police complaint. Keonjhar is over 200 km from Bhubaneswar.
Kalpana, 41 is a resident of Dhenkanal town, some 100 km from here, and she had summitted Mount Everest May 21.