Students protest rape & murder of girl in Sikkim

RAJEEV RAVIDAS , TT, 14 Nov 2019, Gangtok: Scores of college students took out a procession here on Wednesday to protest against the alleged rape and murder of a 19-year-old girl in East Sikkim and to demand the immediate arrest of the culprit.

The rally began from near MG Marg and culminated in front of the district collector's office at Sichey.

The students from threefour colleges in and around Gangtok carried placards, one of which read "Justice for victim".

The girl was allegedly raped and murdered in a forest near her house when she had gone to collect firewood on November 8.

Police had initially registered a case of unnatural death, but after they received post-mortem report on Monday, the case was converted into that of rape and murder under Sections 376 and 302 of the Indian Penal Code.

Even while reposing faith on the police, students wondered why it had taken three days to get the autopsy report.

"The incident happened on Friday, but no proper action has been taken all these days. Our demand is a prompt and proper investigation and strong punishment to the perpetrator of the crime," said a student of Government College, Rhenock.

The police said the incident was being investigated thor- oughly and they had picked up two suspects from the victim's village.

"In the manner we have been working on the case, we are hopeful of reaching a conclusion as early as possible," said Hari Chhetri, the superintendent of police of East Sikkim.

The investigators have appealed for patience and sought the cooperation of the public. "We request all to cooperate with (the) police and assist us by providing information relating to the incident to solve the case," the police said in a message released on social media.

Political and civil society leaders, too, have expressed outrage at the incident. Many of them have visited the victim's home over the past two days to express solidarity with her family.

"Such kind of incident had never occurred in Sikkim. It will not only give a bad name to the state, but will also create a fear psychosis. It is not just good enough to condemn it, we must ensure that severe punishment is meted out to the culprit," said T. Lachungpa, the president of the Sikkim Citizens' Forum, who visited Machong with his team on Wednesday.

According to the family of the victim, the girl had gone to the forest near their home to fetch firewood on Friday. When she did not return till late in the evening, the family members went out in search of her.

"I along with some friends went to the jungle to search for her. We reached the spot where she had gone to collect the firewood and found her lying with injuries to the head. We took her to hospital where the doctor declared her brought dead," said the victim's father.

The girl had appeared for matriculation examination..