Andaman & Nicobar Islands Former Chief Secretary, Current Labour Commissioner Accused of Gangrape

The survivor alleged that she was taken to the chief secretary’s residence by the labour commissioner and promised a government job before being brutally raped by the two men.

New Delhi: A former chief secretary of the Andaman and Nicobar Islands as well as the labour commissioner of the Union Territory have been accused of gangraping a 21-year-old woman in the UT capital of Port Blair.

An Indian Express report has revealed that a first information report (FIR) has been filed against Jitendra Narain, former Andaman chief secretary and currently the chairman and managing director (CMD) of the Delhi Financial Corporation; and R.L. Rishi, the labour commissioner of the UT, at the Aberdeen police station in south Andaman.

After the woman filed a complaint with the UT’s director general of police on August 22, the FIR was registered on October 1 and a special investigation team (SIT) was formed to investigate her allegations.

In her complaint, the woman wrote that she was looking for a job when she was introduced to labour commissioner Rishi by a hotel owner. Rishi took the woman to Narain’s residence where the woman was promised a government job. She was also offered liquor, which she denied, after which she alleged that the two men sexually assaulted her.

She further alleged in the complaint that two weeks later, she was called to the chief secretary’s residence where she was allegedly raped again, this time, along with the threat of “dire consequences” should she tell anyone about the incidents.

According to the Express report, sources close to Narain said that he has filed a “detailed representation” denying the allegations to the Prime Minister’s Office, the Union home secretary, and others.

The woman has submitted a statement to the SIT under Section 164 of the Criminal Procedure Code (CrPC). Further, in the FIR, the woman has sought CCTV footage from the chief secretary’s residence to be accessed so she can identify the staff for the police to question.

The woman also provided the licence plate number of the car in which she was taken to Narain’s residence which Indian Express has confirmed is registered in Rishi’s name.

Further, the woman filed a second police complaint regarding her identity being revealed through members of the local media. In this regard, the scope of the SIT probe was broadened to include a reporter suspected to have broadcast hints about the woman’s identity as well as a police officer who allegedly leaked details of the case to the reporter.