Bhubaneswar: The mortal remains of the 15-year-old girl from Balanga in Puri, who died of severe burn injuries at AIIMS-Bhubaneswar, are expected to arrive in Odisha on Sunday.
According to sources, the body has been handed over to her family after postmortem at AIIMS Trauma Centre. It will be airlifted back to her native place. “Around 8-9 pm, the body will be sent to Odisha,” the office of Resident Commissioner in New Delhi, which is monitoring the transportation process.
The girl was admitted to AIIMS Bhubaneswar with 75% burn injuries on July 19 and airlifted to AIIMS Delhi a day later. She succumbed last evening after a 14-day battle for life.
“The Odisha government took all necessary steps. She was sent to AIIMS-Delhi as well, but her life could not be saved despite the best of treatment. The Opposition parties should refrain from politicising such matters….. The victim’s father has also said that the state government has offered all possible help. So, any third party should refrain from criticising the government. This is a moment of grief and people should not politicise it,” Deputy Chief Minister KV Singh Deo told the media.
Hours after the teenager’s death, police claimed that no other person was involved in the incident and the victim’s father also released a video, claiming she ended her life due to mental distress. He also urged people and politicians to stay away from the case, requesting privacy and peace in their time of loss. “I don’t want to blame anyone. I request you to please keep me and my family away from politics… Everything was fine till she was at home with us. I don’t know how this happened.”
In her later statement before a judicial magistrate, the girl also reportedly admitted to self-immolation.
Also Read: Plot Twist: She Took Her Own Life, Says Father After Balanga Girl ‘Set On Fire’ Dies At AIIMS
Initially, three men were believed to have set her on fire near the Bhargabi riverbank. Even the girl’s mother had lodged an FIR alleging the same.
Congress Gives 7-Day Deadline For Arrest Of Accused
Women Congress leaders in a press briefing here threatened to gherao the DG office if the culprits in the case are not arrested in 7 days. Party spokesperson Sonali Sahu demanded resignation of Nimapada MLA and Deputy Chief Minister Pravati Parida on moral grounds. “This happened in the constituency of the Deputy CM. She has misled people and made false statements over the issue. She had said that the victim was stable and would return home very soon. But we lost her (the victim). She should resign on moral grounds so that the investigation is not further manipulated,” she said.
She further asked if the similarities between the Balanga incident and that involving Soumyashree in Balasore were coincidental or orchestrated.
Congress spokesperson Jayashree Patra questioned the identity of a young man seen with the Deputy CM in photos clicked at AIIMS-Delhi and on social media, and why he was preventing the victim’s family from speaking to the media.
Similarly, PCC media member Madhusmita Acharya noted discrepancies between the initial statement given by the victim’s father and the one after her death. She found it suspicious that the victim’s father claimed his daughter was mentally stressed and expressed satisfaction with the government’s actions.
Binjharpur MLA Pramila Mallik stated that the failure to apprehend the accused even two weeks after the incident raises questions about the police administration. “Since it is the constituency of the Deputy CM, involvement of her close aides and BJP workers are suspected in the case. The statement of the police that involvement of no other person in the incident soon after her death has deepened the suspicion surrounding the incident. Additionally, previous incidents like the self-immolation of an FM College student and the gang rape of a student at Gopalpur beach have brought shame to Odisha,” she said.
BJD leader Tukuni Sahu alleged that the government was offering Rs 20 lakh to silence the victim’s family.
Lekhashree Samantsinghar stated that two incidents in a month have been labeled as suicides. “This has led to the growing suspicion over the role of government and police,” she added.
Other Statements
Odisha Congress president Bhakta Charan Das
“It is deeply saddening. We mourn the death of the daughter of Balanga and pray for her soul’s peace. Our condolences to the family. But we must ask, how did she lose her life? When she was brought to AIIMS, she was sitting in a wheelchair and talking to people. She had given her statement after being admitted, saying that three people brought her and set her on fire. Yet, the police say that three people couldn’t have come on a single bike.”
Congress MP Saptagiri Ulaka
“I had raised this issue two days ago in the Lok Sabha during the Zero Hour… Yesterday the girl died during treatment at AIIMS Delhi. This is the second such incident in a month… As per the police investigation, nobody killed her. The three people who killed her have not been arrested yet. The police said no one is involved in killing her. We don’t know what’s going on. Law and order situation in the state is in ruins. We want the central government to take cognisance. The President comes from Odisha and we want her to focus a little on the state. The CM must resign since he is unable to handle her post as the Home Minister…”
Congress leader Rajani Kumar Mohanty
“… When she was admitted to the hospital, she was in a fine condition. I saw her. The doctors had assured that after taking her to AIIMS Delhi, she would be saved… The investigating authorities took her statement four times… If she was capable of giving her statement, and the Dy CM Pravati Parida told the media just six days before that the victim is recovering at a faster rate, and the police will reveal everything publicly very shortly, then what happened in just four days? … Did she die or something else happened to her?… If the eyewitness and the victim initially said that three people abducted her, then how come this story has been changed now?… Congress demands that if, within seven days, the culprits are not arrested by the state police administration, then we’ll surround the DG office and do something to get justice for the victim’s family. It’s not a question of politicisation. It’s a question of why the accused go scot-free… We demand a judicial inquiry in this case.”
CPI(M) leader Suresh Panigrahi
“Unless there is a judicial inquiry, the truth will never come out. We also demanded this for the Balasore Fakir Mohan College incident. Women are under continuous attack in Odisha, particularly those from the minority community… Even after fifteen days, the Odisha state police have not been able to find the culprits… CPI(M) strongly demands a judicial enquiry headed by a woman judge, and its report must come out within sixty days… Why is the chief minister not taking any drastic steps after such a tragic incident?… The government must adequately compensate the victim’s family financially. One kith and kin of the victim’s family must be given employment…”
Shiv Sena (UBT) spokesperson Anand Dubey
“First and foremost, we express our condolences on the death of the young girl. At the same time, we raise the question—has Odisha now come under the rule of law or the rule of criminals? We are unable to understand this. The law and order situation in Odisha has completely collapsed…But how long will this continue? In every state where the Bharatiya Janata Party is in power, why are our daughters and sisters not safe?…”
…Meanwhile In Bayabar Village
A pall of gloom has descended on the entire village with people mourning her death. Police personnel have been deployed near her house and preparations are underway for her last rites. “She had suffered severe burns earlier and was later taken to Delhi. Her recovery was also progressing. Yesterday morning, she said she wanted to eat watermelon. By afternoon, we were told she had been put on a ventilator and was critical. Then, in the evening, we got the news that she had passed away. The atmosphere at home is very heavy and painful. We are preparing for her last rites…,” a family member told IANS.
