NewsPunch.com ———By Niamh Harris ———— Sun., Aug.29, 2021
The girl was allegedly assaulted by the 53 year old priest and three workers on August 1 after she went to fetch some water from the local crematorium’s cooler.
The girl’s parents who are Dalits, formerly untouchables, allege that a Hindu priest and his associates raped their daughter and then cremated her body without their approval.
The case has sparked days of protests in the capital, New Delhi.
Al Jazeera reports: The four men, who have been in custody since they were arrested in early August, face the death penalty.
The girl’s mother earlier told police the men called her to the crematorium and said her daughter had been electrocuted. They said if she reported the incident to police, doctors conducting an autopsy would remove her child’s organs and sell them.
Her daughter’s body was then cremated before some locals intervened and pulled the charred remains from the pyre.
Despite India’s stringent anti-rape laws, activists and feminists say the situation on the ground has not improved.
Full article here: https://newspunch.com/a-priest-3-others-charged-with-the-rape-murder-of-nine-year-old-girl-in-india/
