All I want is for the perpetrator to be behind bars: Victim's mother
DHANGADHI, FEBRUARY 8
Police investigating the death of 17-year-old Bhagirathi Bhatta have concluded that the teenager from Dogdakedar Rural Municipality-7 was raped before being strangulated to death.
The investigating officers derived the same based on the findings of the autopsy report of the victim which was handed over to the police today.
According to a high-ranking police official, based on the post-mortem report, the police have established that this is a case of rape and subsequent murder. "There were evidences of internal injuries and strangulation. However, investigation is still underway."
Currently, Chief of Sudur Pashchim Province Police DIG Uttam Raj Subedi is probing into the incident from the site of the incident. Prior to this, an investigative team led by SSP Janak Raj Pandey of the province police as well as a team of Central Investigation Bureau were already on field.
The teenager who attended school on February 3 never made it home. She was found dead in a community forest that lies between the school and her home.
The case which is being said to be similar to yet another heinous but unsolved case of rape and murder of Nirmala Panta in 2018 has led to widespread rage. The matter made way into the Provincial Assembly for discussions, today. Many lawmakers lamented that the facts concerning the case have not been made public even after six days of the incident.
All I want is to see the perpetrator brought to book: Bhagirathi's mother
Chairperson of Nepali Congress, Dadeldhura, Karna Bahadur Malla, who is also a provincial assembly lawmaker, visited Bhagirathi's home to offer condolences to his family. He handed over a some financial support to the family but Bhagirathi's mother Draupathi Bhatta refused to accept the sum.
"I don't need this money. If you want to help us, please find the culprit and punish them," Draupadi said. "I do not need anything except to see the person that brutally killed my daughter behind bars," she added with tears in her eyes.
Draupadi had lost her husband, 50, to an illness only a month ago. Her 20-year-old son Keshav left for India two weeks ago in search for a job. However, he had to return home before finding a job on hearing of his sister's death.
"Kanchanpur's Nirmala Panta's murder has remained unresolved for long. I fear the same will happen in my sister's case," Keshav lamented.
"But hope is all we have. We hope the culprit is nabbed and that we get justice. This village will live in fear for as long as that does not happen."
