India's main opposition party Congress has said the alleged gang rape victim from Uttar Pradesh's Hathras deserves justice and not slander.
Reacting to the claim of a ruling BJP functionary that the young girl had an "affair" with the accused, Congress politician Priyanka Gandhi Vadra has described it as "revolting and regressive".
"Creating a narrative that defames a woman's character and holding her somehow responsible for crimes committed against her is revolting and regressive. A heinous crime has been committed at Hathras, leaving a 20-year-old Dalit woman dead", said Priyanka Gandhi in a series of tweets on Thursday.
Creating a narrative that defames a woman’s character and holding her somehow responsible for crimes committed against her is revolting and regressive.
— Priyanka Gandhi Vadra (@priyankagandhi) October 8, 2020
A heinous crime has been committed at Hathras, leaving a 20-year-old Dalit woman dead.
1/2
..Her body has been burned without the participation or consent of her family.
— Priyanka Gandhi Vadra (@priyankagandhi) October 8, 2020
SHE DESERVES JUSTICE NOT SLANDER.
2/2#बेशर्मBJP
The national watchdog for women has "condemned the offensive and defamatory remarks made by political leader #RanjeetSrivastava regarding the #Hathras victim".
The National Commission for Women (NCW) has asked him to appear before it on 26 October to give an explanation.
@NCWIndia strongly condemns the offensive and defamatory remarks made by political leader #RanjeetSrivastava regarding the #Hathras victim. The Commission has sent him a notice directing him to appear before NCW on October 26th at 11 AM to give an explanation. @sharmarekha https://t.co/Nv7z3UHGD0
— NCW (@NCWIndia) October 7, 2020
"He is not fit to be called leader of any party. He is showing his primitive and sick mindset and I am going to send notice to him", said Rekha Sharma, Chairperson of NCW.
Ranjeet Srivastava, a politician from the ruling BJP had said in a video statement that "the woman must have called a youth to the millet field as they were having a love affair. Now all the things are also on social media. The women must have been caught".
Meanwhile, Uttar Pradesh police have filed a case against former BJP legislator Rajveer Singh Pehelwan and 100 others for defying prohibitory orders.
A gathering outside his house had defended the four accused in the alleged gang-rape of a 19-year-old Dalit girl, and demanded registration of a case against the victim's family.
The 19-year-old girl was allegedly gang-raped and subjected to murderous assault in a millet field on 14 September. She died at a Delhi hospital on 29 September after battling for her life for 2 weeks.
Uttar Pradesh police hastily cremated her body in the wee hours of 30 September, claiming a threat to law and order in the village.
The incident evoked strong protests across the country and the top court described it as "a shocking incident", while considering a petition for an impartial inquiry into the incidents.
