CHENNAI: His father constantly tries to hide the cellphone from him. But every time the five-year-old Ravi* manages to outsmart his father and lay his hands on the phone, the only thing he does is to open the gallery and see the videos and photos of his sister.
The family’s memory and the cellphone were perhaps the only place his sister still remains. Life has changed much for them in the last eight months since their little girl - when she was seven years old - was raped, killed and dumped as a disfigured body near a bridge at Anakaputhur.
Speaking to Express, Ravi’s father says his son had looked upon his sister for everything, but after her passing, he has not come to us asking for any kind of explanation. “However, every time a relative drops by and Hasini comes up in our discussions, he sits watching me expectantly, indirectly seeking answers to his own questions,” he says.
The police arrested Daswant, a 22-year-old youth residing in the same apartment, for murdering the child. He is now set to be released after a court granted bail and the Madras High Court quashed his detention under Goondas Act. But Ravi’s family had shifted to their native place in Andhra Pradesh. The father visited Chennai on Thursday to address the media and urge the government to ensure justice for his daughter.
“My wife is now in deep depression and so we had to relocate to our native in Andhra Pradesh. We have disconnected the TV and phone connection. But when I heard the news that the culprit had got bail, I made sure my wife did not get to know it. I lied to her and came to Chennai to fight for justice,” the father said with tears in his eyes.
Addressing the media here, Babu said, a few months after the incident, “Daswant’s father had challenged me that he would soon bring out his son on bail. At that point, I was confident of the judicial system. But the recent court ruling is very disappointing. What guarantee is there that there won’t be another victim like my daughter?”
Supporting him, actress Lakshmy Ramakrishnan pointed out that if Daswant is granted bail, he should prove his innocence. Various studies have shown that such paedophiles are repetitive in their behaviour and allowing them in the society is to put many children’s lives in danger, she said.
Vijayalakshmi Devarajan, Director - HR & Operations Women Achiever - Ministry of Women and Child Development, Union Government, pointed out that eight out of 100 children are prone to sexual abuse and this ratio has only been increasing because of the loopholes in the law. “There should be speedy trials in such cases,” she urged.