A 14-year-old girl has been set on fire allegedly by two AIADMK functionaries near Villupuram in Tamil Nadu. The girl, with more than 95 per cent burn injuries, later died at Villupuram Government Medical College and Hospital (VGMCH) at Mundiyambakka. The Villupuram police on Monday arrested the two AIADMK men--G Murugan (52), husband of a former councillor and K. Kaliyaperumal (60), AIADMK Villupuram branch secretary--in connection with the incident.
“The duo has been arrested based on the statement of the victim. We are probing various angles in the case,” says Villupuram Superintendent of Police S. Jayakumar.
According to police, Jayashree Jayapal lived with her family in a small house at Sirumadurai village near Thiruvennainallur in Villupuram district. Her father Jayapal owned a petty shop near their house. On Sunday, one of Murugan’s friends came to Jayapal’s shop to buy cigarettes. A quarrel broke out between Jayapal’s son Jayaraj and Murugan’s associate. Incidentally, Jayapal filed a case against Murugan’s friend as Jayaraj was injured in the brawl. Upset over what happened to his friend, Murugan along with Kaliyaperumal came to the shop when Jayashree was alone there. Murugan was in an inebriated condition.
Neighbours noticed smoke coming out of the shop a few minutes after Murugan left the place. They rushed to the spot and saw Jayashree engulfed by flames with her hands tied back. The neighbours doused the fire by pouring buckets of water and rushed Jayashree to the Villupuram medical college hospital where she succumbed to her burn injuries. A 15-second video of the girl making her dying declaration has gone viral on social media.
Police said Jayapal and Murugan already had a quarrel over a land dispute. In 2013, Murugan, Kaliyaperumal and six others allegedly chopped a hand of Jayapal’s brother Kumar. The duo had recently come out on bail and the case is still under trial at the Villupuram court. According to police, Jayapal and Kumar own a piece of ancestral land and there was a dispute over the land between Kumar and Murugan for more than eight years now.
A case has been registered against Murugan under sections 302 (murder), 452 (house trespass after preparation for hurt, assault or wrongful restraint), 341 (punishment for wrongful confinement). Jayashree’s death has sent shock waves across the state at a time when the government has just relaxed the lockdown which has been on for over 50 days.
Meanwhile, the National Commission for Protection of Child Rights (NCPCR) has taken a suo motto case based on media reports. The commission has directed the Villupuram collector “to inquire into the death of Jayashree and take strict action against the alleged culprits for this heinous crime under relevant sections of JJ Act, 2015 and IPC”.
“An action taken report along with the authenticated copies of the relevant documents may kindly be shared with the commission within seven days of receipt of this letter,” the commission further said in its order.
While the NCPCR has stepped in the matter and demanded a probe, the commission for child rights in Tamil Nadu is non-functional. According to child rights activists in the state, the State Commission for Protection of Child Rights (SCPCR) has been non-functional as the term of the chairperson and the six members had ended recently. But the state government has not made appointment to the vacant posts. Activists fear that the number of cases against child rights might go up after the COVID-19 pandemic and the non-functioning of the commission might prove disastrous.
