Demanding expedition of the probe and the appointment of a special public prosecutor, Vakapalli tribal women who were allegedly gang raped, approached the High Court on Thursday.
The case deals with an incident that took place on August 20, 2007 in undivided Andhra Pradesh, when 11 Adivasi women belonging to Kondh tribe of Vakapalli village in the Nurmati panchayat of the Agency area, in Visakhapatnam, were allegedly gang raped by the Greyhounds personnel (an elite anti-naxal force) at gun point.
After the Supreme Court refused to interfere, the case is now being looked into by a special court in Vishkhapatnam.
As the case also involves sections of the SC/ST (Prevention of Atrocities) Act, the tribal women contended that the government must appoint an exclusive special public prosecutor, and suggested advocate Dr P Trinadha Rao's name.
They also requested the court to take note of the progress of the case, and order its expedition.
In 2007, the Greyhounds personnel had gone into the village to carry out a combing operation against Maoist rebels, when the alleged rape took place.
An FIR was lodged against the Greyhounds personnel under Sections 376 (ii) (g) of the Indian Penal Code IPC (gang rape) and Section 3 (2) (V) of the SC/ST (Prevention of Atrocities) Act 1989.
After activists approached the High Court, a CID inquiry was initiated, which suggested that the rape allegation was false and the case was unsupported by medical evidence.
A protest petition was then filed against the CID report, following which a junior first-class Magistrate rejected the report.
Following this, the HC was approached again, and it ordered an inquiry into the incident.
The accused policemen later moved the Supreme Court on August 31, 2012.
In September this year, the Supreme Court dismissed the appeal of the accused, but expressed concern at the slow pace of the case, and ordered fast-tracking of the case.
A two-judge bench of the Supreme Court, comprising justices Arun Mishra and Shantana Goudar, noted that the criminal trial must now be concluded within six months.