President Pratibha Patil on Monday met a delegation of women and promised to intervene in the case of Adivasi teacher Soni Sori. The delegation was demanding proper inquiry into the allegations of custodial violence suffered by Soni Sori in Chhattisgarh.
“The President expressed surprise when she heard that S.P. Ankit Garg, under whose direction the custodial sexual violence was alleged to have been inflicted, had received the President's Gallantry award. The President heard the delegation attentively and assured them that she would write to the concerned governments and authorities,” according to a statement.
The delegation comprising of Member of Parliament Brinda Karat, National Advisory Council member Aruna Roy, Annie Raja of National Federation of Indian Women, Uma Chakravarty, retired professor Delhi University, Kavita Srivastava from PUCL, advocate Vrinda Grover and Vani Subramanian from Saheli, also asked for a recall of the Gallantry Award from Ankit Garg as he was facing allegations of sexual violence and custodial torture.
They also drew attention to the protection of the rights and dignity of hundreds of tribal women caught in the cross fire of anti Maoist operations and locked up in jails of Chhattisgarh. D.T.
