On Monday, the 12-year-old Ayodhya gangrape survivor was referred to King George's Medical University in Lucknow for better treatment.
The District Women Hospital in Ayodhya was abuzz with activities on Sunday as the hospital saw a bee line of VVIPs, who thronged the hospital to meet the 12-year-old gangrape survivor, who was hospitalised there. However, amidst the tight security and high-profile visits in the female ward, sat a stone-faced Anara Devi (name changed), mother of the minor girl, who was allegedly gangraped by Samajwadi Party (SP) leader Moid Khan and his accomplice Raju Khan, who used to work in a bakery owned by the SP leader.
“I am no politician, neither do I know who is from which party, nor am I a part of politics, all I know is that something very wrong has happened to my daughter. And I want the culprits to be hanged till death.Paapiyon ko faansi do (wrongdoers should be hanged),” said Anara Devi, while speaking to News18.
Devi said never had she imagined in her dreams that her daughter, the most precious gift given to her by her husband, would be subjected to such atrocities. “I can’t see her in pain,” she said.
Devi said until two and a half months back, they were a happy family. “Though after my husband’s death, we were living in a state of penury, but still we were happy. But, then on the insistence of my neighbours, I sent her to the nearby bakery, owned by Moid Khan, where she took some petty job like packaging,” said Devi.
However, sending her daughter to the bakery, she said, was her biggest mistake. “Initial few days she behaved normally, however, after a few days, I noticed some behavioral changes. Unlike before, she used to stay calm, most of the time. She also stopped playing with other children of her age and used to spent most of the time alone,” she added.
However, before she could figure out the reason behind the behavioral change, her daughter complained of severe stomach ache. “I thought it might be a simple stomach ache and may have occurred due to indigestion or overeating. However, the pain increased to an extent that we had to rushed her to the doctor, who, after examining her confirmed her pregnant. And later we learnt that she was 12 weeks pregnant,” said Devi.
“Over the next two-and-a-half months, Khan continued to sexually abuse the girl and used a video of the assault to intimidate and threaten her. Khan committed these acts with the assistance of Raju Khan. The situation came to light when the minor was found to be pregnant,” a press statement issued by the state government stated.
“A report has been filed against the accused under charges of gangrape and relevant sections of the Protection of Children from Sexual Offences Act (POCSO) Act following the family’s complaint. Both Moid and Raju were arrested and sent to jail,” said Raj Karan Nayyar, senior superintendent of police (SSP), Ayodhya.
When the BJP delegation met the family, and assured all possible help, she said, ‘Please save us. They will kill us all. They are after us.”
On Monday, the 12-year-old Ayodhya gangrape survivor was referred to King George’s Medical University in Lucknow for better treatment, as the women’s hospital in Ayodhya lacks adequate facilities, said Chief Medical Officer Sanjay Jain. Jain accompanied the girl during her transit to Lucknow.
Catch the latest developments on Bangladesh Unrest with our live blog.
