Bhubaneswar (Odisha) [India], August 3 (ANI): Odisha Congress chief Bhakta Charan Das expressed deep grief over the death of a 15-year-old girl who succumbed to her injuries on Saturday while undergoing treatment at AIIMS New Delhi. The girl had been critically injured after being allegedly set on fire by miscreants in the Balanga area of Odisha’s Puri district on June 19.
Speaking to ANI, Das warned that the Congress party would stage a protest outside the BJP office on August 7 if the culprits were not arrested soon.
“… May God give her family the strength to bear such a huge loss. It has been 14 days, but the culprits have not been caught yet… You have to look at this case in conjunction with the Balasore student’s self-immolation case… Why was her statement recorded again and again? Was it to save the culprits? The whole case has come under suspicion,” Das told ANI.
“If they don’t arrest the culprits soon, then we will surround the BJP office on 7 August and demand justice. If the government refuses to arrest the culprits, then we will consider this case as murder and will believe that the government is somehow involved in this,” he added.
Congress leader Mumtaz Patel also condemned the incident, saying daughters are not safe in the country.
“…Justice delayed is justice denied…There have been two incidents in Odisha in the past two months…The President of India should put pressure on the Odisha government to ensure justice…The daughters are not safe in the nation…”
Congress MP Saptagiri Ulaka expressed condolences and criticised the Odisha government.
“…The people behind this incident have not been arrested till now…When will the state government wake up?… The Odisha government is against women…The state government should ensure that such incidents don’t recur in the future…”
The victim had sustained 75 per cent burns and was airlifted from AIIMS Bhubaneswar to AIIMS New Delhi on July 19, where she was admitted to the Burn ICU.
Earlier on Saturday, Odisha Chief Minister Mohan Charan Majhi expressed his condolences.
In a post on X, Odisha Chief Minister Mohan Charan Majhi wrote, “I am deeply shocked to hear the news of the death of the girl victim in the Balangir incident. Despite all the efforts of the government and the round-the-clock endeavours of the specialist medical team at AIIMS Delhi, her life could not be saved. I pray for the eternal peace of the girl’s soul and beseech God to grant strength to her family to bear this irreparable loss.”
Odisha Deputy Chief Minister Pravati Parida also reacted to the incident and called it “unexpected and unfortunate.”
“Following an unexpected and unfortunate incident, the victim from Balangir, who was under treatment at Delhi AIIMS, has passed away. While praying for the eternal peace of the departed soul, I express my condolences to her family in this sorrowful situation. Despite all efforts by the medical team and the government, we are deeply saddened that she could not be saved,” said Odisha Deputy Chief Minister Pravati Parida in a post on X.
Meanwhile, in a post on X, Odisha police urged people not to make any “sensitive comments” regarding this matter during this tragic moment, as the investigation has reached its final stage.
“As to the investigation conducted so far, it is clear that no other person is involved. Therefore, we request that everyone not make any sensitive comments regarding this matter during this tragic moment,” the police said.
According to the police, the minor girl went out with her friends, but she was allegedly abducted midway and taken to the riverside, where she was set on fire. The victim reached someone’s house from the incident spot, after which she was taken to the hospital by her cousin. (ANI)
Disclaimer: This story is auto-generated from a syndicated feed of ANI; only the image & headline may have been reworked by News Services Division of World News Network Inc Ltd and Palghar News and Pune News and World News
HINDI, MARATHI, GUJARATI, TAMIL, TELUGU, BENGALI, KANNADA, ORIYA, PUNJABI, URDU, MALAYALAM
For more details and packages
