In this July 11, 2012 photograph, Indian sprinter Pinki Pramanik smiles in North 24 Parganas district, West Bengal state, India. Indian authorities investigating a rape case say Pramanik who won a women's relay gold medal at the 2006 Asian Games is actually a man. Police charged the Indian sprinter on Monday with raping and assaulting a woman she was living with in the eastern state of West Bengal. The woman alleged Pramanik was a man who had reneged on a promise to marry her. (AP Photo) INDIA OUT.
Athlete Pinki Pramanik's medical report reportedly says she bears both male and female characteristics, even as the Asiad gold medalist saidthe rape charges leveled against her were made with malicious intent to frame her.
A report in The Telegraph quotes doctors who conducted the tests on Pinki as saying she had a condition called male pseudohermaphroditism.
Male pseudohermaphrodites are genetic males (45,XY) who develop female configurations and identities. These individuals have testes, but their genital ducts and external genitalia are female. (Read more on the condition)
However The Telegraph quoted an expert as saying that further tests would need to be done.
Meanwhile,speaking to the media shortly after her release on bail, Pramanik said that the complaint was part of a personal vendetta against her.
Pramanik was arrested on 14 June and remanded in 14 days' judicial custody by a court on 15 June after the athlete's live-in partner, a divorcee and a mother of one, filed a police complaint accusing the athlete of being a male who repeatedly raped and tortured her.
Subsequent to the arrest, Pramanik was taken to a private nursing home for a medical check-up where the test reports claimed that the former top notch athlete was indeed a male. Pramanik, however, has claimed innocence and said it was a conspiracy.
Meanwhile the West Bengal Human Rights Commission has directed the home, health and police departments to inquire into the alleged 'inhuman torture' on the Asiad gold medalist in police and jail custody and submit a report within two weeks.
Kolkata: The West Bengal Human Rights Commission has directed the home, health and police departments to inquire into the alleged 'inhuman torture' on Asiad gold medalist Pinki Pramanik in police and jail custody and submit a report within two weeks.
One complaint has been submitted alleging inhuman torture both in jail and police custody to Pinki Pramanik, WBHRC chairman Justice Ashok Kumar Ganguly, members Justice N C Sil and S N Roy said in a letter yesterday to the three departments.
Pinki Pramanik has been charged with rape after medical reports proved that she is male.
The tests were conducted at SSKM hospital in Kolkata.
The police have submitted a chargesheet against Pramanik at a Barasat Court alongside the medical report.
A district court had earlier granted bail to the former Indian athlete after Pramanik was accused byher live-in partner, a divorcee and a mother of one, of being a male who repeatedly raped and tortured her.
Kolkata:Indian football icon BhaichungBhutia, Ranji Trophy winning Bengal skipper Sambaran Banerjeeand several other sportspersons today demanded justice forAsiad gold medallist Pinki Pramanik who had been arrested on
the charges of gender misrepresentation and rape.
I don't know the entire matter. But I know Pinki hascome up and won gold for the country after much struggle,Bhutia said, adding, Pinki should have got the bail earlier.
Pinki today walked out of jail on bail after 26 days injudicial custody.
Many times, innocents are arrested and punished. Pinkiwas also being punished for the past few days. The case shouldhave been dealt a bit more carefully, he said.
Pinki Pramanik burst onto the scene with her performances at the South Asian Games in 2006, which she ended with three gold medals.
The glittering performance in the 400m, 4x400m and 800m racwas followed up by another gold- this time at the Asian Games in Doha the same year. She also bagged a silver medal at the Commonwealth Games in Melbourne.
Cut to the present, and all the controversy surrounding her gender. Every issue from privacy to treating one as a woman until proven otherwise has been stirred.
But as Pinki continues to maintain her innocence and the fact that she has been framed, it must be remembered that she isn't the only athlete to go through a gender controversy. These are a few other athletes who found themselves in the middle of the gender storm.
