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This is an archive article published on April 1, 2016
Ghaziabad: Raped by neighbour, Dalit teen sets herself ablaze, fights for life
The victim’s father told police that she was assaulted by a resident of the village, who had come to the house with another resident while she was alone at home.
The victim’s mother at Safdarjung Hospital. Cheena Kapoor
A 16-year-old Dalit girl set herself on fire after she was raped at her residence in a village in Ghaziabad Tuesday evening, said police. The girl, raped allegedly by one of her neighbours, suffered almost 30 per cent burn injuries.
The victim’s father told police that she was assaulted by a resident of the village, who had come to the house with another resident while she was alone at home.
“On Tuesday, my wife, my elder son and I had gone to work. My daughter was alone at home. At 6 pm, two residents of my village, Bablu and Renchu alias Amit, came to my house. Renchu stood outside while Bablu entered the house, locked my daughter in her room and did wrong things to her inside… he behaved inappropriately,” the girl’s father said in the police complaint.
While Bablu was inside his daughter’s room, the victim’s younger brother reached the house, said her father.
“He tried to open the door. Bablu opened the door after sometime and started hurling abuses at my son. He made casteist remarks against my son and slapped him. He even threatened to kill him… Bablu and Renchu then fled from the spot,” he said.
“Disgusted by this incident, my daughter doused herself with kerosene and set herself ablaze. She has been admitted to Sudarshan Hospital in Ghaziabad for treatment,” he said in the complaint.
On Thursday, the victim was moved to a government hospital in Ghaziabad and later to Safdarjung Hospital due to her deteriorating condition.
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The police have registered an FIR at Kavi Nagar police station under several sections of the Indian Penal Code as well as the POCSO (Protection of Children from Sexual Offences) Act.
“An FIR against two persons on charges of rape, voluntarily causing hurt, breach of peace, sexual offences under POCSO Act and SC/ST Act has been registered. One accused, Bablu, has been arrested. We are likely to arrest the other accused soon. Both men are around 22-24 years old and are neighbours of the victim,” said a police officer.
Is any compensation worth her life, asks the mother
On Tuesday afternoon, the mother of a 16-year-old girl left her house in a village in Ghaziabad, hoping to earn some extra money for her family, leaving her younger children at home.
“In just a few hours, our lives crumbled,” she said, sitting outside the burns ward of Safdarjung Hospital, where her daughter has been admitted.
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On Tuesday evening, two men from the village went to her house, where one of them allegedly raped her daughter and threatened to kill her if she told anyone about the incident.
Afraid of the social stigma that would follow, the girl doused herself with kerosene and set herself on fire, said her family.
She suffered severe burn injuries on her face and upper torso and is fighting for her life in the hospital.
Her family members alleged that they have received threats after the incident.
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“We have been threatened. The families have offered us some compensation. We might not be as powerful as them, but our daughter is battling for her life here. Do they think any compensation is worth her life?” asked the victim’s mother.
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