Nine-year-old girl forcibly cremated in South-West Delhi; allegedly gang-raped before killing

Delhi, August 4: Parents insist the girl was raped and murdered before being cremated without their consent; the body had been pulled off the funeral pyre midway through the cremation

Delhi CM Arvind Kejriwal said that there is a need to improve the law and order situation in Delhi and orders a magisterial probe into rape. Kejriwal is to meet the victim’s family and says will do everything possible to help them in their fight for justice.

Congress Leader Rahul Gandhi says, "Dalit Child Nation's Daughter Too": Grief, Rage over Delhi Rape, Murder; playing on the praise India's woman Olympians have earned in the past few days.

In a chilling incident, displaying the falling law and order situation in Delhi, a nine-year-old girl was allegedly gang-raped and murdered before being hurriedly cremated. The parents of the Dalit girl insist that the minor who had gone there to fetch water from a water cooler, was raped before being killed in the crematorium in South-West Delhi.

Later, the four accused lead by the purohit (priest), were forcibly cremating the body, when the locals intervened and pulled the body of the minor from the funeral pyre midway through the cremation. The purohit (priest)RadheyShyam, and three other employees of the crematorium -Kuldeep Kumar, MohdSalim and LaxmiNarain were arrested on Monday. According to the police, the accused have said the girl came to the cremation ground and was electrocuted while filling up water.

DCP (South-West) Ingit Pratap Singh said they received a PCR call at 10:30 p.m. regarding the rape and death of a minor girl. The police were also told that she was being cremated.

According to the girl’s mother, the minor left home from Old Nangal village in Delhi cantonment area at 5:30 p.m. on Sunday to fetch water from a water cooler installed in the crematorium and within half an hour RadheyShyam (55), the priest called the girl’s mother and showed her the body, claiming she was electrocuted. The mother alleges that the accused told her if she informed the police, the girl’s organs would be removed during the post mortem and the doctors will sell them.

“They showed her the burn marks on her daughter’s wrist and elbow and said her lips had turned blue. The four then cremated the body,” said DCP Singh. He further added, that the men allegedly made the mother agree to their terms and claimed that it was better to cremate the body.

When the cremation was underway the girl’s mother screamed out for help and villagers and relatives helped to take the body down from the pyre but could only recover charred legs. The accused were held after the victim’s family complained of foul play, and staged protests alongside nearly 200 villagers from Sunday night till Monday evening.

An FIR was registered based on the girl’s mother’s statement, under IPC sections 304-A (causing death by negligence), 201 (destruction of evidence) and 342 (wrongful restraint). Later when speaking to the SC/ST commission, she alleged that her daughter was raped and casteist statements were made against them. Sections under the POCSO Act and IPC sections 302, 376 and 506 were added to FIR.

Delhi Chief Minister Arvind Kejriwal has ordered a magisterial enquiry and said that senior lawyers will be hired to argue the case in court. He also requested capital punishment for the culprits at the earliest. The Delhi CM has announced a compensation of Rs. 10 lakh for the family. He also said that the centre should take steps to strengthen law and order in Delhi. “We will support Centre in this step,” he tweeted.

“The murder of a 9-year-old innocent in Delhi after the rape is very shameful. The culprits should be given capital punishment at the earliest,” he posted on Twitter in Hindi.

Incidentally, Delhi Police is under the control of the Union Government and not under the elected Delhi Government.

Congress leader Rahul Gandhi also visited the girl’s family on Wednesday. “I spoke with the family, they want justice and nothing else. They are saying that justice is not being given to them and they should be helped. We will do that. I have said that I am standing with them until they get justice,” Gandhi said.

“The tears of her mother and father say just one thing that their daughter, the country’s daughter, deserves justice. And I am with them in this path to justice,” Gandhi tweeted after meeting the family.

According to sources, a medical board comprising of three doctors formed to look into the cause of death of the nine-year-old minor were unable to ascertain the cause. The body pulled midway off the funeral pyre, was charred and the team informed the police that forensically they could not ascertain the exact cause of the death. As a next step, police is likely to conduct a polygraph test in the coming days.

Dalit leader and Bhim Army Chief Chandra Shekhar Azad, meanwhile, said their team was already present amid the protesters in the village. He has also met the bereaved family. “We'll help them in all ways in their battle for justice."

Later Mr Azad tweeted in Hindi, "This is my own family. She was my sister." Azad further said, "From Prime Minister to Home minister everyone lives here still there is no sense of safety for women. Why has the Chief Minister not met the victim's parents yet? He lives only a few kilometres from here," he had said earlier.

The Delhi Commission for Women, calling the incident "serious" and meriting "urgent attention", has instituted a panel to carry out a probe. Summoning the Deputy Commissioner of Police of South West District, Chairperson Swati Maliwal has demanded the "complete case file" of the matter, copies of the FIR and various statements, and other details.