Athlete in gender dispute charged with rape after tests show she is male

KOLKATA // Police yesterday charged an international gold medal-winning athlete with raping her former partner after medical tests showed she was actually a man.

Pinki Pramanik, who retired in 2007 after winning team gold in the 4x400m relay at the 2006 Asian Games, was charged after a report was completed by a medical board set up to determine her gender.

"Medical tests have confirmed that Pinki is not a female," BN Kahali, the chairman of the board, said. "Pinki is a male pseudohermaphrodite. We have submitted the medical report to the district sessions court."

Male pseudohermaphrodites are genetic males who develop some female physical characteristics and identities.

Prabir Roy, a police spokesman, said the athlete has been charged with rape and forgery.

Ms Pramanik, 26, was arrested in June and forced to undergo a gender test following accusations from a woman who previously lived in her flat that she had been raped.

Ms Pramanik's arrest and allegations over her gender caused a sensation in India, with rights' groups complaining her privacy had been invaded by the authorities and media in Kolkata.

The athlete, the daughter of a poor farmer in rural West Bengal, also won a silver in the 4x400m relay at the 2006 Commonwealth Games before she stopped competing the following year.