New Delhi: President Ram Nath Kovind on Wednesday condemned the brutal gang-rape and murder of an eight-year-old girl in Jammu and Kashmir’s Kathua, saying such an incidents 70 years after Independence is “shameful”.
Addressing the sixth convocation of Shri Mata Vaishno Devi University (SMVDU) at Katra in Jammu, the President said the safety of children is the responsibility of the society as a whole. “After 70 years of Independence, such an incident occurring in any part of the country is shameful. We have to think about what kind of a society we are developing. It is our responsibility to ensure such a thing does not happen to any girl or woman,” the President said.
“Daughters of India have brought laurels to the country in Commonwealth Games; Manika Batra from Delhi, Mary Kom, Mirabai Chanu and Sangeeta Chanu from Manipur, Manu Bhaker and Vinesh Phogat from Haryana, Saina Nehwal from Telangana and Heena Sidhu from Punjab,” he said, lauding the contribution of women in several fields.
The eight people accused in the gruesome Kathua rape and murder case have pleaded not guilty and asked the district and sessions judge for a Narco test. Of the eight, one is a juvenile.
The eight-year-old victim child from a minority nomadic community was allegedly held in captivity in a small village temple in Kathua district for a week in January this year during which she was kept sedated and sexually assaulted before being bludgeoned to death.
According to the chargesheets filed by the crime branch, the abduction, rape and killing of the girl was part of a carefully planned strategy to remove the minority nomadic community from the area. The caretaker of the 'Devisthan', a small temple, is listed as the main conspirator behind the crime.
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