Rly suspends Pinki Pramanik

Asian Games gold medallist Pinki Pramanik, accused of being a male and currently remanded to judicial custody, has been suspended by the Eastern Railway, with whom the athlete worked as a ticket collector, a Railways official said on Sunday.

“As per the service rules if a person is either in police or judicial custody for 48 hours or more he/she is automatically suspended. Pramanik was remanded to judicial custody on Friday and today (Sunday) she stands suspended,” Eastern Railway spokesperson Samir Goswami said.

Pramanik’s suspension can only be revoked if the court absolves the athlete of all charges, added the official. Officials are also mulling, subject to court’s order, over initiating an enquiry into the physical and medical test which the athlete underwent during her recruitment to the Railways.

Pramanik was arrested on Thursday night after the athlete’s live-in partner, in a complaint filed with the Baguihati police, accused the athlete of being a male who repeatedly “raped and tortured” her.