Bhubaneswar, June 23 (Inditop.com) A nun who was allegedly raped during last year’s communal violence in Orissa identified one more person during a test identification parade of the suspects Tuesday, police said.
The identification parade was held in the central jail at Choudwar in Cuttack district, some 30 km here, in the presence of a magistrate.
“She identified one person during the parade,” an official of the state crime branch of police told IANS.
The 29-year-old Catholic nun was attacked by a mob and raped in Kandhamal district Aug 24, 2008. She lodged a complaint with police two days later.
The state crime branch that is probing the case has arrested 17 suspects for their alleged involvement in the crime and filed a charge sheet against them in a Kandhamal court.
Test identification of 10 suspects was conducted in the same jail early this year following a court direction. The nun had that time identified two people.
The second test identification parade was conducted because seven of the accused were arrested after the first identification parade, the official said.
Kandhamal district, about 200 km from here, witnessed widespread communal violence after the murder of Vishwa Hindu Parishad (VHP) leader Swami Laxmanananda Saraswati and four of his aides at his ashram Aug 23 last year.
At least 38 people were killed in the state and thousands of Christians forced to flee their homes after their houses were attacked by rampaging mobs.
