NEW DELHI: Delhi Chief Minister Arvind Kejriwal on Tuesday approved providing Rs 10 lakh ex gratia to the family of a minor girl who was allegedly raped and killed in the Old Nangal area of southwest Delhi. Kejriwal had last week visited the parents of the victim and announced the compensation besides ordering a magisterial probe into the incident.
“The chief minister has approved the file of giving compensation of `10 lakh to the family of the victim. It will be soon paid to them,” said a government official. The nine-year-old girl died under mysterious circumstances on August 1 when she went to get water from a cooler at a crematorium. The girl’s parents alleged that she was raped and her body was forcibly cremated by a crematorium priest who had falsely claimed that she was electrocuted.
Hundreds of locals, including the victim’s parents, staged a protest near the site of the crime, demanding capital punishment for the convicts. They were later removed by the police after the Army had written urging the blockade be removed given the sensitive location of the protest.
The Delhi Police said that based on the statement of the victim’s mother, rape charges have been added in the FIR. Four people, including the priest, have been arrested. Later the case was transferred to the Delhi Police’s Crime Branch. The tragic incident has led to a nationwide outcry with many political leaders visiting the parents of the victim.