New Delhi: The last thing 15-year-old Sanjali Chanakya asked of her mother was that “she continue to fight for justice” for her.
“I couldn’t fight in this life ma, but you don’t give up,” her mother remembers her saying, shortly before succumbing to full thickness burns that covered more than 50 per cent of her body.
Sanjali was set on fire by two unidentified men who arrived on a red motorcycle Tuesday afternoon, as the class 10 student walked home from Asharfi Devi Chidda Singh Inter-College in the Naumeel village of Agra district, which is located roughly five kilometres from her home in neighbouring Lalau. One of the attackers poured the petrol, while the other threw a lighter at her. The loose sand by the side of National Highway 39 still carries the mark of scorched earth.
After being rushed to S.N. Medical College and Hospital in Agra, Sanjali was transferred to Safdarjung Hospital in Delhi the same evening. She died in the wee hours of Thursday.
Four days after the heinous crime, authorities, as well as the family of the victim, are still unsure about the motive behind it. The police as well as the family believe it has nothing to do with the fact that they are Dalits, with her father Harendra Singh saying he has “no enmity with anyone in the neighbourhood”.
But he does reveal that a few months ago, he was struck on the back of the head by two unidentified assailants on a motorcycle when he was returning from work at 8:30 pm.
“There was considerable swelling for four days, but I assumed they were just miscreants or petty thieves up to no good,” he says. “I didn’t think this could happen to my children tomorrow.” No case was registered at the time.
Dimming hope
Amid mounting pressure from residents, students and social welfare groups in Agra, the police is making efforts to speed up its investigations.
DSP Namrita Srivastava, the circle officer of Agra, says “the police are very close to arresting the culprits”.
However, hope is dwindling for Sanjali’s mother Anita, who says her only wish now is to see the murderers in jail. “My daughter is gone, and she’s never coming back. Now all I can wish for is that the men responsible for this are behind bars,” Sanjali’s mother, Anita, tells ThePrint.
