The brutal and inhuman murder of a two and a half year old girl in Aligarh, UP, has caused tremendous outrage across India. Top politicians and Bollywood celebrities have also condemned this ghastly killing and have demanded deterrent punishment for the perpetrators of this heinous crime.
The girl went missing from Tappal near Aligarh on May 31 and two days later, her mutilated body was found in a garbage dump in Aligarh. Two persons, Zahid and Aslam, have been arrested, and after there was widespread outrage on social media, five policemen have been suspended and a Special Investigation Team has been formed to probe the murder. Till now, the post mortem report has not indicated any sign of sexual assault, but the horrendous manner in which this act was perpetrated is highly deplorable.
I do not have words to express my feeling over this cruel murder. How could the accused murder and mutilate the body of a toddler in this manner? They do not deserve to be called human beings, and they must have no right to live in society. The case must be taken up by a fast track court and they should be convicted and given the death sentence at the earliest.
In 2012, there was nationwide outrage over the manner in which a young woman (Nirbhaya) was sexually assaulted inside a bus, her private parts were mutilated and she was thrown out on the road. She battled for life and ultimately died.
Thousands of people came out on the roads of Delhi to express their anger. Law on sexual assault was completely changed and deterrent punishment was prescribed, but it is sad to note that the convicts in Nirbhaya case are still alive in Delhi's Tihar Jail and they have not been executed.
This week, Nirbhaya's parents pleaded before the Delhi High Court that the the process of executing the death sentence be speeded up, because the convicts have been trying to gain time through mercy petitions to avoid the gallows. This must not happen in the case of the toddler's murder in Aligarh.
I want to raise one more issue. On social media, several individuals have circulated inflammatory messages comparing the Aligarh murder with the heinous rape and murder of a girl in Kathua near Jammu. Attempts have been made to give a communal angle to this incident.
Rape and murder are acts that are perpetrated by criminals, who have nothing to do with religion. The murderers and rapists must get exemplary punishment, but those who are circulating messages on social media by using the victim's picture and naming the perpetrators are equally guilty of inciting people and causing social disharmony.
The government must identify such people and action must be taken against them. Inciting people in the name of religion and injecting communal poison in a civil society is a crime.
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The government must identify such people and action must be taken against them. Inciting people in the name of religion and injecting communal poison in a civil society is a crime.
