By IANS,
Panaji : The 13 angry, livid scars on her body are testimony to her rape allegedly by a local politician John Fernandes Dec 1. Nine days later, the 25-year-old Russian is now counting the mental scars left behind by a completely insensitive and corrupt Goa police.
The victim has been running from pillar to post since the moment she walked up the stairs of the Colva police station in South Goa to file her rape complaint.
“The police officer first refused to file a complaint. But when I insisted he wanted me to tone down my statement from rape to molestation,” she said.
Her fiance Milroy Antao says that the first threats to ‘compromise’ the case were made by supporters of the accused in the reporting room of the Colva police station.
“We were trying to register the complaint, when they came into the room and in the presence of police inspector Siddhant Shirodkar asked us to compromise,” Antao said.
Even after registration of the complaint neither did the police summon Fernandes nor did they track down his car or collect crucial evidence like the victim’s underwear, which according to the victim’s statement was left behind in the car.
“We did not attach the car because if we had, the accused could have made an allegation that we had planted evidence in it,” was the response of the Goa police public relations officer police superintendent Atmaram Deshpande, who went on to add that with the transfer of the case to the Crime Branch (CB), the sleuths would soon get cracking on the case.
As far as the victim was concerned, CB officials simply piled on more and more harassment, she said adding that nearly a week after the rape case was transferred, she is being summoned to the CB office everyday.
“They hardly give any notice. Everyday I have travelled 60 km from the place I stay in Colva to the Crime Branch office. None of the officers came to record my statement. I am the victim here. The police are showing more consideration for the accused, who has not even been summoned for enquiries,” the victim told IANS.
The harassment meted out by the police to the victim was pretty much evident in the police response, after the victim was threatened with death and nearly assaulted outside the Margao district court premises. “We went to the CB to complain about the threats and assault outside court. We were sent to the Colva police station. When we went to Colva, they refused to file the complaint and asked us to go to the Margao police station to register the offence. The police here assists only criminals,” the victim alleged.
She further claims that the CB has not even given her a copy of the first information report (FIR), which has been identified as a complainant’s basic right as per Supreme court guidelines. “I have not been even given a copy of the FIR or the medical report. I simply do not believe Goa is safe for foreigners. This is a place where the police are not even bothered about a serious crime such as rape,” she said.