New Delhi: The last time acid attacks were in the news was in 2020 when the Deepika Padukone starrer ‘Chhapaak’ was released. The Meghna Gulzar-directed film is based on the life of acid attack survivor Laxmi Agarwal.
The nation is in shock once again with the recent acid attack on a 17-year-old schoolgirl in Delhi’s Dwarka area. On Wednesday, the girl was attacked brutally when she was walking down the road with her 13-year-old sister in the capital’s Dwarka area. Two men, who had their faces covered, splashed acid on her and stormed off on a bike. The incident which was captured by a CCTV camera shocked the entire nation. The camera footage displays how the girls are walking down the road when two men on a bike come near them, slow down their two-wheeler, and one of them throws a liquid substance on the older girl.
Here are similar cases from the past:
Reshma Qureshi
On May 19, 2014, Reshma Qureshi, a 17-year-old girl was attacked with acid. Her estranged brother-in-law Jamaluddin threw acid on her to take revenge on her family who had filed a complaint against him after he abducted his son and abused his spouse, Qureshi’s older sister Gulshan. Qureshi lost one eye in the incident and underwent multiple surgeries. She identified her attackers and fought for justice. She also wrote a book about her ordeal.
Preeti Rathi
In May 2013, Ankur Panwar threw acid on Preeti Rathi at the Bandra Terminus in Mumbai. Rathi had reached Mumbai to join a naval hospital at Colaba, INHS Asvini after she earned a job as a Lieutenant in the Indian Navy. Panwar, a family friend of Rathi, envied her for landing a prestigious job when he, on the other hand, was unemployed. Fed up with the constant taunts and comparisons he was subjected to, he decided to take the extreme step. He stole sulphuric acid from the Delhi Electricity Supply Undertaking office and boarded the same train that Rathi did for Mumbai. On reaching the terminus, he waited for Rathi to come to the platform and threw acid on her face as soon as she came face to face with him. Rathi lost her life with no fault of her own and Panwar landed in jail as a murder convict.
Aryanka Hosbetkar
In November 2012, filmmaker Jerrit John threw acid at his Mumbai-based former girlfriend Aryanka Hosbetkar who was 27 years old at the time. John splashed acid on her at her residence in Mumbai’s Worli area and fled the scene soon after. Hosbetkar suffered grave injuries to her eyes and mouth and was immediately admitted to the hospital for treatment. The couple had broken up before that. Hosbetkar had parted ways from him because she discovered he was a married man and a father to a 5-year-old son. John attacked Hosbetkar to take revenge on her. The Mumbai police arrest him and levied an attempt to murder charge on him. The court convicted him in October 2015.
Meena Soni
In 2004, Meena Soni, a journalist who was actively working in Lucknow and was the sole breadwinner of her family was attacked with acid by her spouse when she was asleep at her residence. Soni, who was married off at an early age, started working post-marriage after her spouse lost his job and income. Her jealous spouse decided to make her pay the price of her success after fifteen years of their married life. He poured acid on her face while she was asleep.
Laxmi Agarwal
This acid attack survivor became a symbol of hope. Her story ultimately inspired Meghna Gulzar to make a film based on her life in which Deepika Padukone played the titular role. Laxmi was 15 years old when she became the victim of a brutal act of revenge in Delhi in 2005. She had refused a marriage proposal from a family friend who became obsessed with her. While waiting at a bus stop, her 32-year-old attacker, Naeem Khan, and two other accomplices threw a bottle of acid at her face. It took 7 operations over 7 years to undo the damage of a bruised ego. After her physical recovery, Laxmi started her fight against Khan and on the sale of acid in India. Alongside filing a case against Khan in court, she also filed a PIL (public interest litigation) suit to bring about new laws to ban the sale of acid or at least restrict it. To create awareness, Laxmi joined the “Stop Acid Sale” initiative. The campaign aims to raise awareness about acid violence in the country and how societal stigma prevents acid assault survivors from leading dignified lives. The goal of the movement is to change the communities mindset. She successfully collected over 27,000 signatures on her campaign. Due to the media attention garnered by her campaign, in July 2013, the Supreme Court set new laws to restrict the sale of acid, to garner greater government compensation to acid attack victims and reservations in educational institutions as well as jobs.
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