Not a country for girls

HOLDING up a mirror to society are three blood-curdling incidents of brutality against girls. With each case being no less horrible than the other, one wonders if India is a country fit for girls. The brazenness with which such violence is unleashed underscores lax law enforcement and reluctance to provide justice to the victims. All this emboldens people to break the law.

A 12-year-old girl, raped and left bleeding with her clothes torn, was seen knocking on one door after another in Ujjain, Madhya Pradesh. But shockingly, most people chose to not do anything and callously shooed her away till a priest felt pity for the poor kid and called the cops. It speaks volumes about our system wherein helping the needy often results in undue harassment of the helper by the authorities. A tribal girl, she is now recuperating at a hospital in Indore after a surgery; an autorickshaw driver has been nabbed for the crime. In Assam, a minor lost her life under horrific circumstances. Three men allegedly barged into her home when she was alone, strangled her to death and then sexually assaulted her corpse. They have been arrested under the POCSO Act. The third case pertains to a 21-year-old unmarried woman from Hapur in Uttar Pradesh. She was allegedly left to die in a forest by her mother and brother, who set her ablaze after finding out that she was pregnant. Farmers who heard her screams rescued her. She is in a Meerut hospital, battling 70 per cent burns. Her mother and brother have been arrested.

The perpetrators of these beastly acts deserve quick and stringent punishment. This is vital for not only giving justice to the victims but also to act as a deterrent to those with a criminal intent.