Suryanelli sex scandal: 17-year-old Kerala rape haunts Congress

KOTTAYAM: A day after an AICC spokesperson said the Congress high command will look into the allegations against Rajya Sabha deputy chairman P J Kurien in the Suryanelli sex scandal , the victim's mother sent a letter to Sonia Gandhi, seeking her intervention for an impartial probe.

In a letter faxed to the Congress president on Thursday, the victim's mother narrated the trauma her daughter and the family underwent over the years and how their demand for a probe into Kurien's involvement was not heeded . She said the Congress leadership's decision to support Kurien was disheartening and made it clear that during the early stages of the probe, her daughter had told investigators that Kurien was one of the accused. But they paid no heed.

A complaint lodged with then CM A K Antony also went unheeded. "This is heart-breaking . We think, madam, you being the mother of a daughter of similar age as my beloved younger one, will understand the sufferings of a mother. I cannot understand how you will be able to preserve the dignity and self-respect of women of this country by keeping such people in the leadership of the Congress," she said. She wrote she believed Kurien had exerted undue influence over investigating officials to escape punishment.

She said most investigating officers advised the family to spare Kurien. "But my child still stands by her word." She also said that her two daughters - the elder aged 36 and the victim, 33 -- remain unmarried. "We are ostracized and subjected to humiliation." She argues: "I wonder how can Kurien chair the discussion when the Ordinance for emancipation of womanhood promulgated on the prevention of sexual atrocities against women comes up in the Upper House? Such a situation will amount to tarnishing the image of your party, which has a glorious past in protecting the weaker sex. I humbly urge you to intervene."

Protests rock Kerala house

The Suryanelli gang-rape case continued to rock the assembly for the third day on Thursday, even as the government announced a judicial probe into allegations that two women MLAs were assaulted by the police on Wednesday. The announcement came after the opposition raised the matter in the House. The probe would look into whether the police had misbehaved with MLA Geetha Gopi or roughed up E S Bijimol, during their protest over the government's reluctance in acting against P J Kurien. Earlier, opposition MLAs C Divakaran, K K Lathika, Mathew T Thomas and A A Azeez moved an adjournment motion on the alleged police assault.CM Oommen Chandy termed Wednesday's protest unfortunate as it was against the convention that no protest marches would be held in front of the assembly. Expressing willingness to initiate the judicial probe, Chandy invited the opposition to jointly examine with the treasury benches the electronic proof of the incidents. He added that the police officers at the scene had not misbehaved with the MLAs. Rejecting the CM's arguments, the opposition demanded suspension of the police officers concerned before ordering an inquiry. "When the government itself feels that none of the police officers have done wrong, there is no point in having a judicial inquiry," Kodiyeri Balakrishnan, deputy leader of the opposition said.

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Suryanelli sex scandal: 17-year-old Kerala rape haunts Congress