Sexual deviance shrouded in mystery, inhibition

BANGALORE: Alleged killer Umesh Reddy is not just a `sociopath'' but also a sexual deviant. When arrested on May 17, he was wearing women''s undergarments, while dressed like a man outwardly. He has 20 cases of rape, theft and murder against him.
Although a wide variety of sexual identity disorders and sexual dysfunctions exist, very few are actually reported to doctors, says Dr Ravi S.Pandey, professor and head, Department of Psychiatry, Nimhans. Based on his experience, Pandey says sexual deviation comes to outside notice ``as and when symptoms related to other mental illness are being narrated and sexual problems are discussed''''. This happens because of the `inhibition factor''.
Based on initial police findings, Umesh seems to have a combination of fetishism, transvestism and necrophilia, says Pandey. According to the `ICD-10 Classification of Mental and Behavioural Disorders'' by World Health Organisation, fetishistic transvestism is ``the wearing of clothes of the opposite sex principally to obtain sexual excitement''''. Umesh also indulged in having sex with the corpses of women, known as necrophilia. The paraphilias (abnormal likings) have almost 40 different pathological manifestations.
According to Srinath B.N., a psychiatrist, ``Usually a male with transvestic fetishism keeps a collection of female clothes that he intermittently uses to cross-dress.'''' According to the Diagnostic and Statistical Manual of Mental Disorders by the American Psychiatric Association, ``Some transvestic males wear a single item of women''s apparel, like underwear or hosiery, under their masculine attire.'''' In some instances, cross-dressing becomes an antidote to anxiety or depression or contributes to a sense of peace and calm.
Criminals in the past have also had sexual desire disorders. A senior police official says Alaimani, a criminal who was shot dead two years ago, was a convicted rapist who raped young girls. Nagaraj, another criminal, raped women and killed them by hitting their head with a boulder. Some members of the Dandupalya gang also displayed certain eccentricities in their rape episodes.
Police officials record sexual disorders of criminals either during initial investigations or with the help of voluntary organisations who intervene at the prison level to offer help. So far, five prisoners have died of HIV/AIDS in the Bangalore prison.
Some Paraphilias
* Obscene phone calls - Telephone Scatologia
* Sex with corpses - Necrophilia
* Exclusive focus on parts of body - Partialism
* Sexual activity with animals - Zoophilia
* Smearing faeces - Coprophilia
* Swallowing urine - Urophilia
* Rubbing up against people for sexual stimulation in crowded public places - Frotteurism.