Pinki Pramanik, who was arrested on June 14, has alleged her former live-in lover brought rape charges against her after the athlete refused to give her 300,000 rupees. – Photo by AFP
Pinki Pramanik, who was arrested on June 14, has alleged her former live-in lover brought rape charges against her after the athlete refused to give her 300,000 rupees. – Photo by AFP

KOLKATA: An Indian court granted bail on Tuesday to a female international athlete charged with raping her former girlfriend, who has alleged that she is actually a man.

Pinki Pramanik, who retired in 2007 after winning a team gold in the 4x400m relay at the 2006 Asian Games, underwent a gender determination test during her detention in West Bengal state.

Doctors from a state-run hospital said that Pramanik’s test results were delivered on Tuesday to the trial magistrate in the Barasat district of Kolkata.

“The medical board set up for determining the gender of Pramanik submitted its report after she was produced before the court,” Tamal Kanti Ghosh, medical superintendent at the SSKM hospital, told AFP.

Pramanik, who was arrested on June 14, has alleged her former live-in lover brought rape charges against her after the athlete refused to give her 300,000 rupees.

The content of the doctors’ report was not made public.

But defence lawyer Sibabrata Mukherjee told AFP that the court granted bail to Pramanik as “the accused does not have the capacity” for penetrative sex.

“The allegation of rape does not stand against Pramanik,” Mukherjee said.

Pramanik grew up as the daughter of a poor farmer in rural West Bengal, about 140 miles (220 kilometres) from Kolkata and now works as a ticket inspector on the Indian railways.

She also won a silver in the 4x400m relay at the 2006 Commonwealth Games before she stopped competing the following year.

Pramanik, who had lived with her former partner in Kolkata for several months, was arrested for alleged rape, criminal assault, cheating and criminal intimidation.

Gender disputes in sport are often caused by Congenital Adrenal Hyperplasia, when females have male physical characteristics, or Androgen Insensitivity Syndrome, when someone is genetically male but their genitals may appear to be those of a female.

Opinion

Editorial

Under siege
Updated 03 May, 2024

Under siege

Whether through direct censorship, withholding advertising, harassment or violence, the press in Pakistan navigates a hazardous terrain.
Meddlesome ways
03 May, 2024

Meddlesome ways

AFTER this week’s proceedings in the so-called ‘meddling case’, it appears that the majority of judges...
Mass transit mess
03 May, 2024

Mass transit mess

THAT Karachi — one of the world’s largest megacities — does not have a mass transit system worth the name is ...
Punishing evaders
02 May, 2024

Punishing evaders

THE FBR’s decision to block mobile phone connections of more than half a million individuals who did not file...
Engaging Riyadh
Updated 02 May, 2024

Engaging Riyadh

It must be stressed that to pull in maximum foreign investment, a climate of domestic political stability is crucial.
Freedom to question
02 May, 2024

Freedom to question

WITH frequently suspended freedoms, increasing violence and few to speak out for the oppressed, it is unlikely that...