Deoghar, Jharkhand:
For a week now, residents in Jharkhand's Deogarh town have been out on the streets, blocking roads and highways, protesting the brutal rape and murder of two young teenagers. On May 25, two class 8 students, aged 13, daughters of policemen, were on their way to a friend's place, but were kidnapped en route. Their bodies were found in a water tank by their families the evening after.
One policeman, Sudhir Das, has been arrested but the family says more are involved.
The victim's father said, "I'm not satisfied with the investigation, I'm also a policeman and the role of some policemen in this entire incident is suspicious but has not been probed."
The girls' families allege the police initially didn't take the complaint seriously, a shocking apathy from the force to their own colleagues who were anxiously waiting for any news of the missing girls.
The post-mortem report of the girls shows that they were brutally beaten with severe injuries on their bodies, including signs of sexual abuse. Though a case of murder and destruction of evidence has been registered, no rape charge has been added to the FIR.
And in spite of a week of protests and allegations against the police, the response still seems tepid. Jharkhand Director General of Police Rajeev Kumar said, "The FIR doesn't name any specific person, so we are still looking for the people who are behind this and will investigate accordingly."
The police apathy prompted Left leader Brinda Karat to take up the issue with the country's home minister, Sushil Kumar Shinde, since Jharkhand is under President's Rule and the police directly accountable to the Home Ministry.
Speaking to NDTV, Brinda Karat said, "First of all the FIR does not even mention rape when the post mortem clearly shows it. (If) daughters of serving police people can be kidnapped, suspected by the police, I mean, then, who is safe in that state."
The Home Minister has promised quick action, but it will take more than just words to reassure people on the ground that the police are serious about catching the culprits.