Dumka tragedy...CWC demands action under POCSO

Dumka CWC chairperson Amarendra Kumar recommended sections of the POCSO Act be added to the FIR as the girl was a minor as per our probe.

Ranchi/Dumka (Jharkhand): The Child Welfare Committee (CWC) in Jharkhand's Dumka district said the class 12 student who died after being set on fire by a man was a minor, and demanded action under the POCSO Act. The committee said she was around 16 years old as per the class 10 board examination marksheet and not a major as claimed by the police.

"We recommend that sections of the POCSO Act be added to the FIR as the girl was a minor as per our probe," Dumka CWC chairperson Amarendra Kumar told PTI. A four-member CWC team led by Kumar met the victim's family on Monday and procured her marksheet. "According to her marksheet, she was born on November 26, 2006she was a minor. So, sections under the POCSO Act are applicable in this case," he added.

Earlier, Dumka Police had claimed that the deceased had mentioned that she was 19 years old in the statement given before the magistrate. The incident happened in Dumka town on August 23 when the accused, identified as Shahrukh, allegedly poured petrol on the deceased from outside the window of her room when she was sleeping and set her on fire, police said.

The deceased was first admitted to Phulo Jhano Medical College and Hospital in Dumka in a critical condition with 90 per cent burn injuries and later referred to RIMS. She died on Sunday. The accused has already been arrested. Her body was cremated on the banks of Mayurakshi River amid tight security. (PTI)