The accused in the Delhi Nirbhaya gang rape case have been convicted by the Supreme Court of India. However, the Nirbhaya of Odisha is yet to see the light of justice.
In case of Delhi Nirbhaya, the victim was educated and was with her boyfriend till mid-night returning after some recreational activities.
However, in case of Nirbhaya of Odisha, the victim was a minor blind girl student. Her home did not have a toilet due to apathy of the Government machinery.
She was brutally raped and murdered in the Puri-Konark area. As the house does not have a toilet, the poor girl woke up to urinate outside her house in Beldal village of Puri. She was kidnapped by a driver, brutally raped and murdered. On the recovery of the body, it came to light that the girl was raped and murdered and the accused pierced iron rod into her private part.
Three cases of noted human rights activist and lawyer Radhakanta Tripathy before the National Human Rights Commission (NHRC) for complete probe of the incident, finally bore fruits in the form of a direction to the State to pay compensation to the family members and ask for the preventive steps taken by the Government to stop such brutal act in future. The Commission called for a report on the above complaint from the District Magistrate and SP, Puri. According to the report, the blind girl went outside the house to urinate. A dead body was lying in front of Tosali Resort in a cashew nut jungle. When the father of the girl and the family members visited the spot they found that the girl was raped and murdered. On receipt of the complaint, a case was registered.
The investigation further revealed that on the June 5, 2013 night, the accused Banamali Barik found the deceased minor girl in front of her house in the odd hours and taking opportunity took her to Tosali Resort and raped her. When the deceased resisted, the accused throttled her neck and when she was semiconscious, he pierced iron rod causing injuries to her private part resulting in profuse bleeding and her death. Thereafter, the accused fled the scene.
The investigation team conducted the autopsy of the deceased and on the basis of the report, a case was registered. It appears that on the direction of the High Court of Orissa, a sum of Rs 1, 50,000 was paid to the kin of the deceased.
In his rejoinder, Tripathy had submitted that considering the brutality perpetrated on a minor blind girl student, the compensation is not adequate. He stated that the facts and circumstances of the case are even worse than that of the Delhi rape. The family members of Nirbhaya have got huge amount as the incident occurred in the capital of the country and got huge publicity, whereas the poor blind girl’s family in Odisha remains neglected due to lack of publicity as the incident relates to a remote area of the country.
In the opinion of the Commission, the payment of compensation of Rs 1,50,000 to the father of the deceased is on lower side. Considering the manner in which the blind girl was murdered and the family status, the Commission recommended a further payment of Rs 1,50,000 by the Government of Odisha. This additional amount may be to some extent to mitigate the ordeal suffered by the family due to the loss of minor blind girl.
The victim’s family is yet to see the ray of justice as the enhanced compensation as promised by the Chief Secretary before the NHRC has not been paid.