The father of the seven-year-old child, who was raped and murdered by a 22-year-old neighbour at an apartment in Mugaliwakkam last February, on Thursday demanded that the court cancel the bail granted to him. He wanted the maximum punishment be given to the accused so as to send a strong message to those who commit sexual assault on children.
Last February, Daswant, 22, raped the child and dumped her body near a bush under a bridge in Pallavaram and burnt it. The child’s family relocated to Hyderabad after the tragedy and her mother remains under treatment for depression. The Madras High Court quashed an order detaining the suspect under Goondas Act and a sessions court in Chengalpattu recently granted him bail. The victim’s father, who came to the Chennai Press Club accompanied by a few social activists, expressed his disappointment over the court orders, which paved the way for the suspect to come out of prison.
He said: “I am highly disappointed over recent orders of the High Court and the other court. I did not expect that the accused would come out on bail. If he is released on bail, people will lose faith in the judiciary. I don’t know what laws and rules say but the accused should not be allowed to come out on bail and should be given the maximum punishment. My daughter won’t come back, and whatever happened to her should not be repeated to any other child in the country.”
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He sought the intervention of the Chief Minister and the Chief Justice of Madras High Court to intervene and render justice.
Social activists Vaikunth Kasturirangan, television anchor and actor Lakshmy Ramakrishnan, Ashokumar Balakrishnan and Vijaylakshmi Devarajan urged a speedy trial in the case.