Thinking of Choti Nirbhaya on the 3rd Anniversary of Nirbhaya Case

Choti Nirbhaya’s rapist is in judicial custody, chargesheet is to be filed in a couple of days.

The spot at N-86 slum in Keshav Puram, Delhi where the child was raped. (Photo: The Quint)

Choti Nirbhaya, a 4-year-old baby girl, is just one of the hundreds of girls who met with the same fate as Nirbhaya, after the hue and cry and candle marches following the 16 December 2012 Delhi gangrape case.

Public anger and outrage after that fateful incident had given some hope that things would change for the better, that the administration would put an end to its apathy on the issue of women’s security. Things seem to have changed, but for the worse. The data from National Crime Record Bureau says it all. While the number of crimes against women (on record) was 5,959 in the year 2012, it increased to a whopping 12,888 the next year.

Though the Nirbhaya incident, one hopes, has made it easier for other rape survivors to come forward and register their cases, the sudden jump in the number of such incidents is a serious cause for worry.

And Now, Choti Nirbhaya

Choti Nirbhaya was raped by an acquaintance, her Rahul Bhaiya, who lured the child with the promise of a chocolate or chowmein. The child lives in slum by a railway line in Lawrence Road Industrial Area.

The slum where Chhoti Nirbhaya lives. (Photo: The Quint)

On October 9 this year, the accused took the child across the railway track and raped her behind a garbage dump. He even tried to murder her, leaving cuts with a blade on her little face and body.

The child is surviving on colostomy these days. She is scheduled to undergo a surgery on February 26 next year, which will enable her to pass her body waste naturally.

The rapist is in judicial custody and a chargesheet is to be filed in a couple of days. The child had to go to identify her offender as soon as she became conscious after the incident. After spending almost a month in Safdarjung Hospital, the little survivor had to go to the court to record her statement, the day after she was released.

The little rape survivor comes from a very poor family – nine members are supported by two breadwinners. Her father and her grandfather, both daily wage labourers, have not been able to go to work after the incident as they have been busy taking care of the child.

The Quint launched a campaign in association with BitGiving to raise financial support for the child. Of the Rs 5 lakh that was raised, Rs 1 lakh was given to the family for immediate use and the rest has been placed in a bank account to be drawn by the family in equal instalments over a period of 10 years. The money will be used for the child’s medical and educational expenses.

Delhi Government’s Promise Unfulfilled So Far

The Delhi government had promised to help Choti Nirbhaya, following The Quint’s initiative, but we learn help has not yet reached the family.

The only money they have received, other than that raised by The Quint in association with BitGiving, has come from Nirbhaya Fund – a sum of Rs 25,000.

Crimes against children has been increasing continuously over the previous years. While the number was 8,541 in 2012, it increased to 12,363 in 2013 and to 13766 in 2014.

The question still haunts us – did the public outrage and the many promises by the administration after the fateful Nirbhaya incident trigger no change? What can we do to effect real change?