Three minor sons of the Dalit couple in poll-bound Uttar Pradesh, who were hacked to death over non payment of a debt of Rs 15, would recieve compensation to the tune of Rs 32 lakh by the state government.
The boys will also be admitted into a government-aided school in the district and will be given accommodation and education till class XII.
"Besides free education and lodging, the boys — Rahul, 15, Ranjit, 13 and Lalu, 8 — will be paid compensation of Rs 32.30 lakh under various schemes, Mainpuri district offcials said.
The eight-year-old, Lalu, is the only one among the five children to have ever gone to school. He is in Class V.
The compensation amount will be deposited in the bank accounts of the boys and they can access it after each turns 18.
After the government's announcement, the two daughters of deceased couple Kiran, 21, and Milan, 18, who continue to stay at their parents’ home after marriage, also want a piece of this reversal of fortune, according to The Indian Express.
“Maa baap jo jeete jee na kar paate, woh mar kar kar gaye in bachchon ke liye. Aise hi hote hain maa-baap (What the parents couldn’t do in their lifetime, they have done in their death. This is how parents are),” approves Kiran's husband Neeraj.
Kiran though is bitter. “Though we too have lost our parents, only my brothers will get all the money. Not us. In any case, we have to manage the money for their last rituals from our own pockets,” she says.
Kiran’s husband Neeraj has spent the past few days running around to arrange money for a shanti paath (prayer ceremony) for his in-laws.
Chief Minister Akhilesh Yadav was the first to announce compensation, of Rs 5 lakh, from his relief fund. Beside the Rs 5 lakh announced by the chief minister, the boys will get Rs 10 lakh under Kisan Beema Yojana (Rs 5 lakh for each victim), Rs 17 lakh (Rs 8.5 lakh for each victim) under the SC/ST compensation rules and Rs 30,000 under the family insurance scheme.