17-year-old rape victim dies by suicide

A 17-year-old rape victim died by suicide in Bhopal on Wednesday night, officials said on Thursday. The girl had consumed sleeping pills at a state government-run shelter home on Monday and was undergoing treatment at Hamidia Hospital in Bhopal, the officials said.

“On Monday afternoon, the girl consumed sleeping pills to end her life. She was rushed to Hamidia hospital where she died on Wednesday while undergoing treatment. After post mortem, the body was handed over to the family,” said Sai Krishna Thota, SP, Bhopal (south).

The girl’s family, however, has accused the shelter officials of harassing the girls at the home. “The shelter superintendent was harassing all the girls and a few days ago she physically assaulted them too. Depressed with life in the shelter, my sister ended her life,” the girl’s cousin said. “Even after death, the administration didn’t allow us to take the body home. The body was sent to cremation ground directly from the hospital,” he alleged. Following the girl’s death, Bhopal district collector Avinash Lavaniya has removed the superintendent of the shelter home and ordered a magisterial inquiry into the matter.

The shelter home’s superintendent denied the allegations of the girl’s family. “The girls want to go home and are getting frustrated and misbehaving with staff members. A few days ago, they beat me up too. I don’t know from where the girl got the pills,” she said. During counselling by Childline, the girls had revealed that Pyare Miyan, the owner of a vernacular newspaper in Bhopal, used to invite them to parties where he raped them. The girls were moved to a government-run shelter after at least four FIRs were filed against Miyan in Bhopal and Indore.