Two motorcycle-borne men threw acid on a national level netball and hammer throw player near her home in Gurdaspur, Punjab. The incident took place when the girl was returning home after writing her Class XII examination on Wednesday.
The police said the victim, Rajinder Kaur, sustained serious burn injuries. She was initially admitted to the Civil Hospital in Gurdaspur. She was shifted later to Guru Nanak Dev hospital in Amritsar as her injuries were very serious.
Kamaljit Kaur, victim’s mother, said the girl had been receiving threats for many days and a complaint had been lodged with the police. “But the police did not take any pre-emptive action. The tragedy could have been averted.”
In a similar incident in Rohtak, Haryana, two motorcycle-borne youths threw acid on State-level volleyball player Ritu Saini in 2012. In December last, a sessions court sentenced three men to life imprisonment and two others to 10 years in prison for the attack.
Taking cognisance of Ritu’s case and two other acid attack incidents, the Supreme Court issued notices to State governments in July 2014 seeking information on the steps taken to enhance the rehabilitation and monetary compensation awarded to acid attack victims.
The court also issued strict direction to the States to curb the open sale of concentrated acid. They were also directed to make laws to regulate the sale of acid.