Tales of women burnt at the state of greed
By our staff Reporters
Bangalore May 11. For once, heart-rending stories of dowry victims and parents
of women burnt alive appeared to touch the seat of pOwer - the Vidhana Soudha.
It was the venue of a public hearing by the Joint House Committee of the
legislature on violence against women today. The programme was conducted by
Vinochana, a women's organisation.
The mother of a victim - Faheem Taj of D. J.Halli recalled the tragic incidents
In December last In which her daughter was allegedly burnt to death.
Occasionally stopping to wipe her tears, she narrated the story of the pains she
took to make Faheem a doctor. Within days after Faheem's wedding, she was burnt
to death, allegedly by her husband. She said could not accept that her daughter
had died In a stove burst, though police men had "pressured" her to do
so.
"Even as my daughter lay In the hospital bed, the pollce made me wait for
hours In the station, wHere had been to sign a complalnt When the pollcemen
asked her why she wanted to ruin, the career of a young man, she told them that
her daughter too'was young. The police men harassed her before they issued an
acknowledgement of the filing of her complaint, she said.
She alleged that the Inspector, Mr. Pratap Singh, and the sub-inspector,
Mr.Appaji, tried to make it 'appear that Faheem Taj had married the man she
loved, though it was an arranged marriage,the officers "failed" to
record Faheem's dying statement. Her daughter had told the police that her
husband had poured kerosene and set her on fire. The police listened, but did
not record the statement, saying they would do so after she recovered. But
everyone knew that she would not survive, Faheem's mother told the panel.
Faheem died on her birthday. Her mother said that the police did not allow her
to see the body. She expressed suspi-, cion about the correctness of the post
mortem procedure and demanded justice.