Sixteen years after 11 Adivasi women were allegedly gangraped by a group of police personnel in Andhra Pradesh’s Alluri Sitharama Raju district, a verdict was finally pronounced, acquitting all 13 accused. The court cited the failure of the investigating officers in conducting a fair and impartial investigation, as the main reason for the acquittal. The judge of the 11th Additional District Sessions Judge-cum-Special Court under the Scheduled Caste and Scheduled Tribe (Prevention of Atrocities) Act in Visakhapatnam pronounced the verdict on Thursday, April 6.
Despite the acquittal, the judge ordered that the nine survivors be paid compensation through the District Legal Services Authority. While the first investigating officer (IO), B Ananda Rao, is now deceased, the judge also ordered that the other IO, Sivananda Reddy, be referred to the Andhra Pradesh government’s Apex Committee, to face proceedings over his “failure to conduct proper investigation.”
It was on August 20, 2007, that 11 Adivasi women, belonging to the Kondh tribe (classified as a Particularly Vulnerable Tribal Group) and residing in the Vakapalli hamlet in the Nurmati panchayat of present-day Alluri Sitharama Raju district, were allegedly gangraped, at gunpoint, by personnel of the Greyhounds, a special anti-Naxal police force.
The survivors, as well as activists from several groups including the Human Rights Forum (HRF) and Progressive Organisation of Women, have alleged that since then, the government machinery has worked to defend the accused police personnel. "The first investigating officer, B Ananda Rao, did not visit the village until many days after the incident. They also alleged that the statements of the accused were recorded prior to the survivors’ statements, and that the accused were treated as witnesses," Y Rajesh, Andhra Pradesh general secretary of HRF told TNM.
A criminal case was initially registered with the Paderu police, under section 376(2) (rape by police officer) of the Indian Penal Code (IPC), and relevant sections of the SC/ST (PoA) Act. With the investigation progressing slowly, the Andhra Pradesh High Court had handed the probe over to the Crime Branch of the Criminal Investigation Department (CB-CID). With several alleged lapses in the investigation process, including delayed medical examinations, the agency submitted a final report stating that no incident of rape had happened. The survivors led a long fight for justice with the help of activists, before the trial finally commenced in August 2018, after the Supreme Court’s intervention. Two of the 11 survivors had died before the trial began.
Pronouncing the verdict on Thursday, the judge ruled that the nine living survivors are entitled to compensation, and directed the District Legal Services Authority to decide the quantum. The Human Rights Forum noted in a statement that this direction in itself showed that the court had “reposed faith in their depositions.”
Speaking to TNM, special public prosecutor Sunkara Rajendra Prasad said, “The court issued directions to initiate necessary proceedings against the investigating officer as he had not done the investigation properly. This stands as the prime reason that the prosecution was unable to establish that the accused committed the crime.”
Rajendra Prasad added that the investigating officers did not follow proper investigation guidelines, and due to the long-delayed trial, the survivors were unable to recognise the accused. “From the beginning, the investigation did not take place properly, as the police claimed that Maoists had influenced the tribal women to lodge the complaint,” he said.
“The very fact that the Court has ordered compensation to be paid to the Vakapalli rape survivors shows that the Court reposed faith in their depositions. It is a landmark judgement and a major victory for the women of Vakapalli as they stood steadfast in their demand for justice and never gave up their struggle,” Human Rights Forum (HRF) stated in a press release.
Reacting to the verdict, M Lakshmi, Visakhapatnam district president of Progressive Organisation of Women said, “The survivors have braved a long battle, faced humiliation at home, and were even boycotted for a long time. The court has ordered compensation for them, which implies that it has recognised the agony the survivors experienced all these years.”
"The Court held that the acquittal was primarily because of the failure of the two Investigating Officers in not conducting a fair and impartial investigation..
— Gutta Rohith (@gutta_rohith) April 6, 2023
Today’s landmark judgement is a major victory for the women of Vakapally (two of whom have since died)." pic.twitter.com/ftiuDiX6Ip