LUCKNOW: During her visit to the Badaun gangrape victim's family, Chandramukhi Devi, a member of the National Commission for Women (NCW), on Thursday created a row by saying that the incident could have been averted if the victim had not ventured out in the evening.
The NCW member was sent to Badaun by the commission to meet the family members of the gang-rape victim. While interacting with media persons, she said: "A woman should always be mindful of the time and should not venture out late even if she is under pressure from someone. I wonder if the victim had not gone out alone in the evening, or gone with a family member, she could have been saved."
However, NCW chief Rekha Sharma took to Twitter to distance herself from the opinion of Chandramukhi Devi saying she 'does not know' why the NCW member made such a statement.
She further said that 'women have all the right to move on their will whenever and wherever they want to’. She added that it was the duty of society and the state to make places safe for women.
The 50-year-old victim, an Anganwadi worker, had left for a temple in her village at around 6 pm on Sunday. When she did not return for two-three hours, her family went to the police station but were turned back. Later that night, at around 11:30 pm, three men dumped her half-naked body, profusely bleeding and badly bruised outside her home and fled. According to the victim’s family, the three men were temple priest Baba Satyanarain Das and two of his accomplices Ved Ram and driver Yashpal.
While the main accused carrying a reward of Rs 50,000 on his arrest is still elusive of police net, the remaining two accused were arrested by the police on Wednesday.
The deceased, a mother of five, was the sole earning member of her family. As per the account of events given by the victim’s family, she left home at around 5 pm on Sunday to offer prayers at a nearby temple. At around midnight, three men – the priest, Satyanarain Das, Vedram, and Yashpal -- came in a car and left her body in front of the house. They claimed that she had a bad fall at the temple.
“My mother was dying, bleeding all over, no clothes on her,” said her son whose statement was seconded by the victim’s husband who said she was bleeding profusely and died within a few moments of being left by the three perpetrators at the house.
The next morning, they went to the local police station to file a complaint. “They turned us away twice… It was only when we called 112, around 2-3 pm police came,” her son said.
However, soon after the incident, the NCW took its notice and chairperson Rekha Sharma wrote to UP DGP seeking immediate intervention in the matter. She underlined alleged police apathy for the delay in filing an FIR in the case.
Meanwhile, Samajwadi Party chief Akhilesh Yadav has decided to set up a three-member committee of party members to get to the bottom of the gang rape and murder case.
SP spokesman Rajendra Chaudhary said the committee headed by former party MP Dharmendra Yadav would visit the spot and “probe” the incident. The committee would also meet the family of the victim and console them.
The Congress party has sought a judicial probe by a sitting High Court judge into the incident. It also demanded that the victim’s family be given a compensation of Rs 50 lakh.