Moga molestation: Standoff ends, girl cremated
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Moga: Ending a four-day protest that had embarrassed the ruling Badal family, the father of the girl, molested and pushed to death from a moving bus, on Sunday accepted the Punjab government’s offer of compensation and a job and also agreed for the post-mortem and cremation of the body.
The body of the teenaged girl was consigned to flames at her village Lande Ke at 8.35 p.m. amid tight security arrangements after the last rites were performed by the father, who insisted there was no compromise with the State government to break the deadlock.
Punjab Chief Minister Parkash Singh Badal met the father and other members of the victim’s family here.
Mr. Badal described the incident on the moving bus as “intolerable” and “painful” while the police said all the four accused had been arrested.
Earlier, the victim’s father told reporters here: “I want to perform the last rites of my daughter.”
He also said that he had agreed for the post-mortem “without any pressure.”
The father had so far been refusing to perform the cremation till a case was filed against Deputy Chief Minister Sukhbir Badal and others who own the Orbit bus service and cancellation of licence to it. He had been staging a sit-in along with some local politicians to press his demands.
“Whatever the State government has offered to us is acceptable to me. They [state government] have fulfilled our demands and have assured us that my daughter’s killer will be punished,” the victim’s father said.
About compensation, he said he did not know about the quantum. The government had earlier offered a compensation of Rs. 20 lakh, a government job for her injured mother, her free treatment and holding trial of the case in a fast track court but the family had rejected it.
Moga Deputy Commissioner Parminder Singh Gill said that Rs. 24 lakh compensation to the affected family would be paid by Orbit Aviation, owners of the bus, instead of the district administration.
The money will be deposited with Red Cross Moga from where the money will be handed over to the affected family.
The girl’s father also sought an end to the protests. “My daughter has already died. If my wife [who is in hospital] dies, then what will be the use of my life? Now I want to lead a normal life.”
Meanwhile, the Punjab and Haryana High Court here has taken suo motu cognisance of a letter written to it regarding the molestation case. The court directed that it be placed before a Bench.
