2015 Chandigarh gangrape: ‘Feel scared on streets… try to mingle with crowds of women,’ says victim

Since that incident, the victim’s struggles have increased owing to her mother’s cancer diagnosis in October 2017 — the cancer is in its last stage. The family of two survives on her mother’s government pension of Rs 1,000, help from neighbours with medicines and food, and ration procured from Mother Teresa’s Mission of Charity. This is the home from where she was adopted when she was 13 months old.

Her father died of a liver ailment when she turned four.  Her mother used to work as a domestic help. However, after her cancer was detected, she became bed-ridden.

In 2015, the victim was studying as a Class XII student at Government Model Senior Secondary School in Sector 18 and resumed schooling in February 2016. “They [teachers and classmates] behaved normally, as if I had recovered from an illness and come back,” she said. Even so, she couldn’t clear her final exams, which exacerbated her depression.

During the course of the court case, the victim and her mother were repeatedly approached and harassed by the accused and their families. “Sometimes their family members would come and they’d tell us to take Rs 5 lakh each from them so that we wouldn’t take the case to court. A lot of our neighbours and family friends would tell us to take the money. But I told my mother, no matter what happens, I will not take the money,” she said.

“My father had explained one thing to me that the day your zameer (conscience) dies, you should kill yourself too. From that day on, I thought that I would never sell myself. That thought has since then stayed in my mind: to keep fighting and not be afraid of anything.”

Reacting to the sentence, she said, “I am happy that they (rapists) are convicted and that my mother has got some good news while she is alive. She has been very tense about the case.”

The victim wants to study further and pursue a degree in music.”I just need support. These people (neighbours and family friends) think marriage is the only solution. I want to earn and give something to my mother with my first salary, just like everyone else does,” she said.