Dalit gang-rape victim set ablaze in Pilibhit dies at KGMU hosp

A minor Dalit girl, who was allegedly gang-raped and set on fire by two men in Pilibhit, succumbed to her injuries at the King George’s Medical University hospital here on Monday morning.

The girl was hospitalised at KGMU hospital with serious burn injuries. Her body was handed over to her family after autopsy.

The incident took place at Pilibhit’s Kunwarpur village where the girl was sexually assaulted. The accused had later poured diesel on the girl and set her ablaze. She was battling for her life at the hospital but succumbed to her injuries after 12 days.

The two accused have been arrested by the police.

In view of the sensitivity of the incident, a heavy police force has been deployed in the village. After the death of the teenager, the condition of the family has become miserable. The family has taken the girl’s body to the native village and her last rites will be performed there.

Chief Minister Yogi Adityanath, on Sunday, held a meeting with officials regarding the law and order situation in the state via video conferencing. The chief minister reviewed the work of the officers who were negligent in incidents of murder of women in Lakhimpur, Pilibhit, Lucknow, Gonda, Budaun and Amroha.

Notably, two Dalit minor sisters were found hanging from a tree in Lakhimpur Kheri district on Wednesday, leading to outrage over law and order in the state. The post-mortem reports confirmed that both girls were raped and then strangled.

On September 7, a Dalit girl was allegedly gang-raped in Pilibhit district and the two rapists later tried to kill her by setting her ablaze but she managed to survive with severe burn injuries. The two accused were arrested four days after the incident when the girl regained consciousness and revealed her trauma.

A video of the incident also went viral following which the police became active. The girl initially battled for life in the district hospital at Pilibhit from where she was referred to Lucknow after her condition deteriorated further.

The local police said that the girl, a resident of a village under Madhotanda police station, was brought to the district hospital on September 7 in a critical condition. A video of the girl accusing the two youths of gang-raping her and then setting her ablaze went viral on social media on the next morning following which the police swung into action. Senior officers of the district police reached the hospital and started the investigation. The two accused — Rajveer and Tarachand, both residents of the same village — were arrested on the basis of a complaint filed by the girl’s father, police said.

Courtesy : The Pioneer

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